Australia is on track to meet its 2030 emissions reduction target, the federal government has claimed.
Chris Bowen, minister for climate change and energy, on Sunday released an excerpt of data from the annual Climate Change Statement (CCS) showing Australia is currently on track to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by 42 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 – just short of the government’s 43 percent reduction target.
The CCS in 2022 projected that Australia was on track for a 40 percent cut from 2005 levels by 2030.
Bowen, who will table the full CCS report for 2023 in parliament on Thursday before traveling to the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to be held in the United Arab Emirates, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that the data shows the Australian government is “getting on with the job.”
“The latest emissions projections show what we’ve always said – our 43 percent target is ambitious but achievable,” he said.
“As our trading partners ramp up their own transitions, reducing emissions isn’t just a climate imperative but critical for keeping competitive – especially creating jobs in the regions, exporting clean energy, products and resources to the world.”
However, a separate report published by NGO the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) on Sunday claimed that the government’s efforts to reduce emissions are being undercut by its approval, or support, of 16 new fossil fuel projects since winning power in May 2022.
Bowen told ABC television he did not agree with the report’s findings but admitted the government has approved metallurgical coal developments to support steel manufacturing
