Climate Change Action

Climate change is the biggest challenge facing the global community today. Every home can make a difference.
EACH AUSTRALIAN HOME CREATES 16 TONNES OF GREENHOUSE GAS EVERY YEAR! Greenhouse gases contribute to climate change, which is considered one of the major threats to our planet. While government and business have their role to play, ordinary Australians can make a big difference too. Individual households create almost one-fifth of Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. Most is produced by energy used for home heating and cooling, water heating and private transport There are 6.5 million households in Australia, and each produces on average 16 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year. Simple changes to our everyday activities can save 3 or more tonnes of greenhouse gases each year - and save ordinary families hundreds of dollars.

See the Environment Challenge Website for actions that you can take to reduce your greenhouse gas emissions.

Sustainable Living Tasmania also offers Home Sustainability Assessments.  We can help you save electricity, water and money. Contact us if you are interested in having one of our trained assessors visit your home.

Climate Action Hobart is a recently formed community group dedicated to taking action on climate change in Tasmania. For more information or to get involved send an email to the group.

Recent Climate Change Policy Reports

There have been a series of significant Tasmanian and Australian climate change policy documents that have been released recently.

Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme - White Paper Released by Federal Governement

The Australian Government released the White Paper on Monday 15 December 2008. The paper outlines the final design of the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and the medium-term, target range for reducing carbon pollution. This paper follows from the Green Paper, released in July 2008, which canvassed options on the design on the scheme. It takes into account the outcomes of a broad consultation and input from more than one thousand submissions. They have set a 5% reduction of 2000 emissions levels by 2020, with the option of an increased target of 15% if an international agreement is reached. The full report can be downloaded from http://www.climatechange.gov.au/whitepaper/index.html.

The Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme Green Paper canvasses options and preferred approaches on issues, such as which industry sectors will be covered and how emission caps will be set. It also includes ways to address the impacts on Australian households, emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries and other strongly affected sectors. To download the report, visit: http://www.pmc.gov.au/publications/greenpaper/.

To read the Tasmanian Governments response to the Federal Government Green Paper click here.

Garnaut Climate Change Review Final Report Released

This report, commissioned by the federal government, examines the impacts, challenges and opportunities of climate change for Australia. The draft report was released in July. The supplementary draft report: targets and trajectories came out in early September. The Final Report was released on 30 September 2008.

Green Carbon - New Book on the role that Forests have in Climate Change

Green carbon is the carbon stored in the plants and soil of natural ecosystems and is a vital part of the global carbon cycle. This report is the first in a series that examines the role of natural forests in the storage of carbon, the impacts of human land use activities, and the implications for climate change policy nationally and internationally. Download a copy of the book here.

The major Australian environmental organisations came together to release a joint climate change policy ahead of the 2007 Federal Election. This is a very succinct document with 12 key actions that governments need to undertake to avoid dangerous climate change. Click here for the document.

Also, Climate Action Network Australia (CANA), an umbrella organisation of which SLT is a member, has released a report called 'Turning Down The Heat' which contains a more detailed discussion of necessary climate change policies. Both documents call for an emission reduction target of 80% by 2050 and 30% by 2020. Click here to go to the report.

Climate Change Strategy for Tasmania

A Statewide Partnership Agreement on Climate Change was signed on the 16th December, 2008 by Mayor Mike Gaffney, President, Local Government Association of Tasmania and Premier David Bartlett. Tasmania will be the first state in Australia to undertake baseline monitoring, assessment and reporting of carbon emissions across all councils. A copy of the agreement can be downloaded here.

Tasmania is the second Australian State to legislate a greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. The Climate Change (State Action) Act 2008 establishes a target of 60 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. It also provides for the setting of interim and sector-based targets by regulation. The Act establishes the Tasmanian Climate Action Council which provides high level, independent advice to the Premier on climate change.

Climate Action Tasmania

Sustainable Living Tasmania hosts Climate Action Tasmania, a community action group working to bring about change in government policy, and corporate and community behaviour regarding climate change. Click here to express your interest.

Walking Bus

Want to get a Walking Bus going in your school? For more information, check out the Department of Education website or contact karen.weitnauer@education.tas.gov.au.

Climate Action Network Australia (CANA)

CANA is the Australian connection to a global network of CANs on every continent. CANA's website is at http://www.cana.net.au/

The Great Global Warming Swindle
This documentary by Martrin Durkin is a slick and viewable film, promising to show that "the actual scientific basis for the theory (of man-made global warming) is crumbling". Over several decades, the views presented by GGWS have been considered and tested by the world's climate scientists. An overwhelming majority of scientists have rejected them as irrelevant to the present, pressing debate. The film is screened on ABC in July 2007, and viewers need to be aware of its fallacies and misrepresentations. Click here for our response to the film.