Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg’s suggestion that the proposed Clean Energy Target may be abandoned indicates the Turnbull Government is walking away from any serious action to halt dangerous climate pollution, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) says.
ACF Chief Executive, Kelly O’Shanassy, said: “For too long the government has dithered on developing a comprehensive plan to tackle Australia’s soaring carbon pollution.”
“It is an international embarrassment that a wealthy country like Australia has rising levels of climate pollution in this day and age.
“We urgently need a comprehensive national plan to begin driving down pollution. Australians are fed-up with Canberra’s failure to tackle climate change.
“The Clean Energy Target was presented as a starting point by the Turnbull Government for stopping pollution. But it looks like the government is planning to abandon even this modest measure.
“Australia’s climate policy is now looking more and more like Donald Trump’s. Like the US President, the Turnbull Government is abandoning support for clean energy while propping up dirty coal power.
“It is welcome that Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg now recognises the low cost of clean energy. But his government continues to back dirty fossil fuels with massive subsidies.
“We need a proper plan that recognises the dangers of climate pollution, not another sop to the dirty fossil fuel industry. Global warming threatens our way of life. It threatens our safe, liveable planet. It threatens our Great Barrier Reef.”
