Sept. 18 (UPI) — Australia aims to reduce carbon emissions by at least 62% by 2035, marking an ambitious goal by one of the highest greenhouse gas emission generators in the world.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the new emissions plan Thursday during a press conference, stating “it’s the right target to protect our environment, to protect and advance our economy and jobs and to ensure that we act in our national interest and in the interest of this and future generations.”
According to a release from the prime minister’s office, the goal is to reduce between 62% and 70% of carbon emissions based on 2005 levels. It is a drastic reduction from the 43% reduction it set to be achieve by 2030.
The announcement comes on the heels of the publication of a government-commissioned climate risk assessment report on Monday that found more than 1.5 million Australians will be at risk from sea level rise by 2050. It said nearly 600,000 would be affected by coastal flooding by 2030.
The goal adopted by the Albanese administration came as advice from the Climate Change Authority, which said the 62% to 70% range was “Australia’s highest possible ambition” that was achievable.
“Our recommended target will deliver some of the largest emissions cuts anywhere around the world,” the Climate Change Authority said in a statement.
“On a per-capita basis, the target equates to a 76-81% reduction once projected population growth over the coming decade is included. Australians’ average pollution profile would improve faster than our peers, particularly over the 2031-35 period, as we build momentum beyond the 2030 legislated target.”
To achieve the goal, Australia will increase renewable electricity generation across the economy, lower emissions by adopting electric vehicles, establishing a low-carbon liquid fuels industry, accelerating investments in new technologies and promoting landowners to earn money from adopting practices that store carbon, such as planting trees and regenerating forests.
According to an August 2024 report from Climate Analytics, a global climate science and policy institute, Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions per capita are among the highest in the world, double that of China and nine times that of India. It is responsible for 4.5% of global fossil carbon dioxide emissions, it said.
Australia’s climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, said the global shift to clean energy has usher in the largest economic transformation since the Industrial Revolution, and presents Australia with “our best-ever economic opportunity.”
“If we get it right, if we make the right investments at the right time, we can grow our economy, create good jobs for Australians. And today, the Albanese government decided to seize that opportunity,” Bowen said during the press conference.