In most policy areas there are multiple ways to achieve the goal of ‘improvement’. That’s why we’ve taken a comparison approach to the policy announcements so far: compiling all the details from the three parties on one page, and leaving it up to readers to decide whether those promises are good enough for you. But when it comes to climate – the most important, existential and urgent topic of the 2022 Federal Election – there is a clear benchmark we must measure every announcement against.
Climate action ‘success’ is limiting global heating to 1.5ºC. Scientists and experts agree that there is only one way to achieve this goal. So, unlike the other policy comparisons, below we will tell you whether Labor, Liberal and Greens climate promises are good enough. Whether they include the proven, required changes. If climate truly is the defining issue of the 2022 election, we owe it to ourselves to be honest about which parties are taking it seriously.
Last Update: 18 April 2022.
Required Policy to Limit Global Heating to 1.5ºC
According to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – the authority on climate research – to keeping heating to 1.5ºC we must:
- Ensure global greenhouse gas emissions peak before 2025;
- Reduce global emissions by 43% by 2030 (most of which can comes from shutting down coal-power alone);
- Achieve global net-zero carbon dioxide emissions in the early 2050s. The IPCC asserts that global temperature will stabilise when CO2 emissions reach net-zero.
Hitting these milestones is crucial if we want to avoid making the planet unliveable. How do we make that happen? There are three policies are that are non-negotiable – we cannot hit the targets without them. You can only take government climate action seriously if it includes:
- No New Fossil-Fuel Developments or Power Plants: A commitment to not approve any future oil or gas field developments, nor any future coal-fired power stations can be built from this year (actually, from 2021). As our existing coal-fired plants come to their expected closure dates, we must replace it with a clean, renewable plant. All existing fossil fuel plants must be closed by 2040.
- Significant Investment in Renewables: To ensure we can meet the country’s energy needs, funding needs to be committed to scaling renewable energy and the technology that will make it accessible to everyone. The technology exists – it just needs to be funded consistently for the next decade, minimum.
- Stopping Combustion Engine Vehicle Sales by 2035: Focus on incentivising electric vehicle sales, to reach 60% of new car sales globally by 2030. This of course needs to be accompanied with infrastructure developments to support EV drivers around Australia.
Anything outside of these three policy areas is simply *bonus*.
Climate Action Policy Evaluation
| Stopping Fossil Fuels | Investing in Renewables At Scale | Stopping CE Car Sales | |
| LABOR | NO | YES | YES |
| LIBERALS | NO | YES | NO |
| GREENS | YES! | YES | YES |
Ending Fossil Fuels
LABOR
- Labor has committed to match the Coalition’s pro-coal policies if it is elected to government. In Opposition, Labor has supported the approval of new fossil fuel projects including the Betaloo Basin
- Unless Labor changes this, nothing else they do will matter
LIBERAL
- The Coalition increased fossil fuel subsidies in the 2021-22 financial year by 12% – sending a total of $11.6 billion to the industry in a single year
- Plans to continue to export coal and gas beyond 2050
- Unless the Liberals changes this, nothing else they do will matter
GREENS
- Immediately ban the construction of new coal, oil and gas infrastructure
- Transition mining workers and communities to long term, sustainable industries
- Phase out the mining, burning and export of thermal coal by 2030
- Stop subsidies to coal, oil and gas corporations
- Reintroduce the carbon price and a new levy on climate pollution exported, so companies have to pay for the emissions they are responsible for
Investment in Renewables At Scale
LABOR
- Increase household renewable capabilities by rolling out 85 solar banks around Australia; and investing $200m to install 400 community batteries across the country (connecting around 100,000 households)
- Invest $20 billion into the Rewiring the Nation program, modernising the power grid for more efficient electricity distribution and transmission, and increased renewable supply
LIBERAL
- Rather than focusing on renewables, the Coalition is sticking to its misguided ‘gas-fuelled recovery’ strategy, with it’s key project in the $600m Hunter Power Project. Natural gas is not a renewable source of energy
- Instead of increasing funding for renewable and clean energy, the 2022 Budget projects decreasing allocations to key agencies over the next four years – the opposite of what we need
- Instead of investing in renewable power, they will spend $140m on two Hydrogen Hubs; $60m on two Carbon Capture and Storage Hubs
- They will invest $400m in two critical minerals projects (lithium and tantalum) for the development of battery tech
GREENS
- Large-scale public investment in renewable energy and storage, to replace all coal-fired plants by 2030
- Upgrading the electricity transmission and distribution grid to accommodate more wind and solar energy
- Establish a publicly owned, non-profit power retailer to ensure consumers get the financial benefit of cheaper solar and wind-generated electricity
Incentivise Electric Vehicle Sales
LABOR
- Subsidise the cost of electric vehicles with two tax exemptions. Buyers won’t have to pay the 5% import tariff on certain EVs; and businesses who provide their staff an EV through work won’t have to pay the 47% fringe benefits tax on certain models
LIBERAL
- Nothing to report here.
GREENS
- Subsidise the cost of an electric vehicle by up to $15,000 and provide ultra-cheap finance for the remainder
- $2 billion to build a publicly-owned EV fast charging network across the country
- Completely electric Commonwealth fleet by 2025
- Ban sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 (second-hand sales will still be allowed)
- Legislate vehicle pollution standards
- $1.2 billion in funding to manufacturers of EVs and components to develop the local industry
Bonus: Other Environment Policies
LABOR
- $40m in funding ($10m per year) for the management of Indigenous Protected Areas (IPAs) by Traditional Owners and Indigenous Rangers. This program aims to double the number of Indigenous Rangers, bringing them to 3800 by 2030
- $85m for restore and protect projects on the Great Barrier Reef, plus another $63m for the remainder of the Reef 2050 program. Labor will stop funding the controversial Great Barrier Reef Foundation and re-allocate any of their unspent funding to other organisations
- $200m grants program funding up to 100 projects to fix urban rivers, wetlands and catchments
- $38m to Disaster Relief Australia, to help them help local and international communities affected by natural disasters
LIBERAL
- An additional $1billion to the Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan
- $800m over the next 10 years to science projects and strategic protection of Antarctica and the Antarctic region
- An additional $100m for the Environment Restoration Fund, which provides grants for water quality projects of Australia’s major rivers, protection of threatened wildlife species and their habitats
GREENS
- Invest $2 billion each year to plant 2 billion trees by 2030
- End native forest logging
- Create an independent Watchdog to enforce Environment Protection Laws
- Set water recovery targets and water buybacks to save the Murray Darling
- Increase funding to the Indigenous ranger program and expand Indigenous Protected Areas
- Restore the Carbon Farming Futures grants and create a sustainable agriculture research centre, to develop green alternatives for farmers
- $50 million to wetlands and coastal restoration; $20 million for Sea Country Indigenous Protected Areas
- Extend the ban of super-trawlers to include 95 metre vessels.
- And loads more, honestly…
No ‘gotcha’ moments, no reporting on redundant press conferences, no triggering opinion pieces – Zee Feed is covering the 2022 Federal Election in a way that’s better for your brain.
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