Australia and the Abbott Government‘s policy on Climate Change is the subject of extensive and severe questioning from larger developed nations with regards to its ability to deliver on promised emissions reductions.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has facilitated the questioning of the legislation, all of which are levelled towards querying the policy, and questioning the decision to actually remove and repeal legislation that was aimed at, and was working towards, achieving globally recognised levels of carbon reduction.
The questioning has come from a diverse range of nations – both large and small – and largely revolves around concerns that Australia simply isn’t doing enough, and is aiming far too low in their goals for emissions reduction.
The
United States,
Brazil,
China,
Saudi Arabia,
New Zealand,
Switzerland and the
European Union have all submitted questions to Australia via the UNFCCC. As of yet, Australia has yet to answer any of them, although it is expected that the Federal Government will file answers by the end of May.
The questions themselves are quite damning in nature. Brazil believes our target for emissions reduction aims far too low.
“Considering the low level of ambition presented until now, as well as the historical
data, does Australia intend to change its unconditional target in order to increase its
level of ambition?”
Meanwhile China criticised Direct Action’s conditional increasing of emissions reduction targets – which will occur only in the event that neighbouring developing nations India and China are forced to do so as well, arguing that if Australia is forced to cut their emissions when competitors are not, it will place the nation at an economic disadvantage.
“Australia further indicated that the 15% and 25% conditional targets are based on the level of international action, especially from advanced economies.”
“This ambition level is far below the requirement that Australia set out for advanced economies. Please clarify the fairness of such requirements.”
The general gist of questioning, particularly from the bigger economies, is that Australia’s adopting of the minimum 5% reduction by 2020 is, not to put too fine a point on it, weak bullshit, and that the nation could be doing much, much more to reach internationally recognised standard goals.
Australia is already ranked as the worst performing developed nation on climate change policy,
polling 57th out of 58 in a December study conducted by the
Climate Action Network Europe. Only Saudi Arabia fared worse.
The Government’s attempted blocking of climate change as a priority agenda topic at last year’s G20 summit has already put Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Australia writ large in the diplomatic bad books of the international community with regards to the topic. Pressure on the Government to answer questions at an International Forum will more than likely ramp up over the coming months, in the lead up to the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, to be held in Paris later this year, where an internationally standard, legally binding agreement will be formed that will hold all nations globally accountable to achieve standardised levels of carbon reduction.
Unsurprisingly, the Abbott Government has not responded as of yet.
Photo: Stefan Postles via Getty Images.
