If you love Australia, climate change should scare the hell out of you

I love Australia.

Australia is a nation on the extremities, where climate change will
 affect and strip away what we love much sooner than will
 occur in Europe and North America.’

It’s not a thing you hear too often from progressives. Mostly this is because we don’t go in for the pathetic jingo-nationalist, quasi-militaristic “love it or leave it”-style patriotism that John Howard attempted to link with a love of country.

But I do love Australia. I get an absurd amount of irrational pride when I hear of Australians doing well.

When I read stories that Indigenous rock art might be among the oldest in the world I get excited and think, yeah suck it, caves of Cantabria!

I can still remember where I was when John Aloisi scored the winning penalty against Uruguay (jumping up in my home in Cairns and cutting my hand on the overhead fan), and like all sensible Australians I let out a deep groan whenever I hear someone start yet again an “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” chant at the tennis.

Read the story from The Guardian by Greg Jericho - “If you love Australia, climate change should scare the hell out of you.” 

It should not be up to Australia's schoolchildren to stop Adani

The Coalition government under Scott Morrison appears to have forgotten the first rule of holes: when you’re in one, stop digging. It’s far too early to describe the Morrison government as terminal; the six months or so till a mooted May federal election is a long time in politics. But the government seems content to write off the message from Liberal voters in Wentworth and Victoria, particularly on climate change, because they do not represent its ‘base’. God only knows where the Liberal base is if it isn’t located in blue ribbon Liberal seats, but who are we to argue?

There were 114 fires burning across Queensland on Friday.CREDIT:

Coalition government policies under John Howard, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and now Scott Morrison have failed to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions. Australia’s emissions are rising when they should be falling. Worse, the Morrison government appears determined to back policies and projects that will increase emissions and fuel global warming.

Read the story from The Sydney Morning Herald by Ebony Bennett - “It should not be up to Australia's schoolchildren to stop Adani.”

National energy guarantee: don't let Malcolm Turnbull bore you out of the climate debate

In the past decade, Australian climate policy has gone from "the great moral challenge" to the great acronym challenge. It's gone from John Howard and Kevin Rudd's bipartisan acceptance of carbon pricing to a tedious debate about what is, or isn't, a carbon price. And while public acceptance of climate science and support for renewable energy is at an all-time high, the public's patience with politicians is at an all-time low.

Don't let Malcolm Turnbull bore you out of the climate debate.

The Turnbull government's national energy guarantee (or NEG) comes on the back of the CPRS, the RET, the EIS and the CET. But while the public are disengaged from the policy detail, more than two million Australian homes now have solar panels. The cost of renewables is collapsing and there is genuine community enthusiasm for new initiatives like South Australia's installation of the world's largest battery. It's a risky time to play politics with renewable energy.

Read the story from The Canberra Times by Richard Denniss - “National energy guarantee: don't let Malcolm Turnbull bore you out of the climate debate.”

Another prime minister, another endorsement for coal – but why?

Since John Howard, all Australian prime ministers have faced major challenges regarding the gap between Australia’s role as a major exporter of coal and its fluctuating ambitions to help tackle climate change.

Turnbull has now shown himself to be no exception, with yesterday’s comments about coal being important for decades to come marking a retreat from his previous rhetoric of policy change. Perhaps this is unsurprising, given how bloody the past few years of Australian climate policy have been.

Read what a PhD Candidate from the Sustainable Consumption Institute at the University of Manchester,  Marc Hudson, said on The Conversation -  “Another prime minister, another endorsement for coal – but why?”

Things are grim at the aptly named 'Cape Grim'

Tasmania's Cape Grim.

News that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have passed the globally significant milestone of 400 parts per million at the aptly named Cape Grim in Tasmania should be of concern to people everywhere.

The Age has long argued that the time for scepticism about human-induced climate change has passed; the scientific evidence is beyond reasonable doubt. On the crucial question of what is causing global warming, which has already pushed average temperatures about 1 degree above pre-industrial levels, the debate is over. As the United Nations conference in Paris in December showed, there is all but universal agreement on the need to act.

It is lamentable that almost 10 years after John Howard went to the 2007 election promising a market-based carbon pricing scheme his party rejects that path and is heading to an election with a policy viewed with scepticism around the globe.

Read today’s Editorial in the Melbourne Age - “Global warming: Grim news on carbon dioxide should compel change.”

Steamy Grahame Morris illustrates what's wrong with Abbott's energy policies

T

Grahame Morris - he had steam
coming out of his ears
on ABCs Q&A last night.

here was a brief exchange on the ABC TV’s Q&A program on Monday night that neatly summed up all that is wrong with Australia’s energy policy.

Grahame Morris – a former chief of staff to Coalition prime minister John Howard, and a corporate lobbyist who is influential in the government of Tony Abbott – had, in the words of host Tony Jones, steam coming out of his ears at the idea that wind and solar could offer a future energy solution.

Read the RenewEconomy story - “Tony Abbott in denial about Australia’s energy future”.

Final IPCC report produces a flurry of news reports

Release of the final report by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has resulted in a flurry of news reports.

This report is the last before next year’s Paris summit at which an international binding agreement to tackle the root causes is hoped to be reached.

News outlets around the world have reported on the IPCC findings and accompanying the media commotion has been comment and analysis from many pundits.

In a story headed: “U.N. Panel Issues Its Starkest Warning Yet On Global Warming” the New York Times the New York Times says: “The gathering risks of climate change are so profound that they could stall or even reverse generations of progress against poverty and hunger if greenhouse emissions continue at a runaway pace, according to a major new United Nations report.”

The Melbourne Age, in a story headed: “UN panel warns opportunity to stop climate change fading fast” says “The world must stop almost all greenhouse gas emissions through a phased elimination of fossil fuels by 2100 if we are to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, a new United Nations report says.”

Meanwhile, Age reporter, Nick Miller his written a special piece in today’s Age headed: “Climate conference analysis: a new urgency appears”.

Many have criticized the coalition’s Direct Action policy (now law) arguing it will do little, other than transfer public money into the bank balances of private enterprise.

However, Australia’s Environment Minister, Greg Hunt, is confident a signature policy of the Abbott Government will have the desired outcome and has said that in an Age story “Greg Hunt says IPCC report vindicates the government's Direct Action policy”.

At the same time, a former advisor to ex-Prime Minister, John Howard, has declared Direct Action as “Mickey Mouse”.

Geoff Cousins, now the Australian Conservation Foundation president, has said in a story headed: “Direct Action is a Mickey Mouse scheme says former Howard adviser” that the government was failing all Australians in the area of climate change policy.

Cousins sees the light and moves form 'the dark side'

Little by little people are seeing the light and moving from “the dark side” to help advance causes that both protect the environment and mitigate climate change.

Geoff Cousins was formerly a part of the corporate juggernaut, but has now switched to become an environmental warrior and has been appointed to head the Australian Conservation Foundation - the country's largest environmental lobby.

Deborah Gough’s story in today Age headed: “Gunns pulp mill nemesis Geoff Cousins to head ACF” tells of this move by Mr Cousins.

“Mr Cousins, a one-time consultant to prime minister John Howard, met with the conservation group's board on Monday, after initially being approached by an unnamed board member to replace retiring president Ian Lowe, who held the job for 10 years”, she writes.