A Low Carbon Growth Plan for Australia

There’s been a campaign of mind washing Australians, by those most to gain, to believe that a response to global warming through carbon mitigation will be at a significant cost to society that will result in job losses and a lower quality of life. This has virtually made the policy proposition for an emissions trading scheme a back-leaning ladder to climb. What’s more, this has turned the pinhole into a doorway for climate change deniers and skeptics to march into.

However, as shown by respected individuals such as economists Sir. Nicholas Stern internationally and Prof. Ross Garnaut locally, as well as globally-recognised firms such as McKinsey, there are significant negative-cost opportunities (that is, you can make money) for carbon reduction. Furthermore, delaying action may result in these costs becoming prohibitively expensive in the future.

A study released by ClimateWorks Australia in March 2010 has affirmed these conclusions, and highlighted the immediate opportunities. ClimateWorks Australia is a partnership between the Myer Foundation and Monash University, Chaired by Prof. John Thwaites, ex-Deputy Premier of Victoria. It is a non-profit organisation formed to provide practical solutions dedicated to a sustainable and prosperous low carbon society. Interestingly, it is affiliated to ClimateWorks Foundation in the United States, generously supported by Hewlett, Packard and McKnight Foundations.

The key findings of the Low Carbon Growth Plan for Australia are:

• Australia can reduce its GHG emissions to 25% below 2000 levels (a reduction of 249 MtCO2e) by 2020 at a low cost (around 0.1% of projected GDP per household), using technologies available today.
• The Low Carbon Growth Plan identifies 54 separate opportunities - across all sectors that can be implemented over the next ten years to achieve these emissions reductions.
• Reducing GHG emissions can be profitable for business, with around 22% of opportunities being perceived as profitable.
• A combination of a carbon price and targeted action is required to achieve the full potential of low cost emissions reductions.
• A portfolio of prompt action is required to implement the 54 opportunities, that takes account of the risk of “locking-in” emissions for the long term and the ease of emissions reductions.
• Delaying action will mean some low cost opportunities are lost, ensuring greater cost to society and business in the long run.

For the benefit of our own economy, we must address this perception gap, and engage in moving to a low carbon economy by embracing, at the very least, the opportunities it presents.

Source: Low Carbon Growth Plan for Australia, March 2010, ClimateWorks Australia, Monash University (www.climateworksaustralia.org accessed 21st March 2010).

Terence Jeyaretnam is a Director of Net Balance (terence@netbalance.com), based in Melbourne.