Independent Member for Kurrajong Thomas Emerson MLA has expressed disappointment at the lack of ambition from the major parties after his attempt to bring forward the ACT’s net zero target from 2045 to 2040 was voted down in the ACT Legislative Assembly today.
Mr Emerson sought to amend a motion from the ACT Greens on the forthcoming ACT Climate Change Strategy by adding a call to bring net zero forward to 2040. He said the ACT needed to show leadership on climate action, setting an example for similar action at the national and international level.
“The ACT has long been considered a climate leader, but we’re becoming complacent, with just a 0.1 percentage point reduction in net emissions since 2019-20,” Mr Emerson said.
The ACT Greenhouse Gas Inventory for 2024-2025 shows that emissions had been reduced by 46.8 per cent from baseline levels in 2019-20, and by just 46.9 per cent from baseline levels in 2024-25, meaning the ACT missed its interim target of 50-60 per cent by 2025.
Mr Emerson said he had also provided a detailed, community-led submission into the Government’s consultation process for its next ACT Climate Change Strategy, putting forward over 30 policy measures aimed at achieving net zero by 2040 and adapting to a warming climate. He also tabled the submission during the debate today.
“It’s disappointing that the Government’s Climate Change Strategy Discussion Paper doesn’t contain any actual policy measures to reduce emissions,” said Mr Emerson.
“We need to implement a suite of bold reforms to get Canberra on a clear trajectory toward net zero,” Mr Emerson said.
”If anyone can do this and do it right, it’s the ACT. Let’s show the rest of the world what a truly sustainable, forward-looking, climate-friendly city looks like.”
The 2024 Independent Review of ACT Government Action on Climate Change recommended bringing the ACT’s net zero target forward from 2045 to 2040. The review noted that ”A more aggressive emissions reduction pathway is consistent with the IPCC assessment that current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) commitments risk increasing temperatures beyond 2.0˚C.“
Bringing forward the ACT’s net zero target by five years also has the backing of local organisations including the Conservation Council ACT Region.
“As the self-proclaimed most progressive jurisdiction in the country, the ACT plays a crucial leadership role in setting the national agenda,” Mr Emerson said.
“The climate policies we implement can push the boundaries of what’s possible at a national level and, with sufficient ambition, an international level.
“We need to articulate and bring about a positive, ambitious, community-backed vision of the Canberra we want for future generations.
“For too long, climate policy settings have tended to favour wealthier community members who’ve been able to purchase EVs, solar panels and home batteries. It’s unfair that those who most need protection from fuel price shocks and rising power costs are often the most exposed to these risks because they’ve been unable to participate in the energy transition. We need to do more to actually follow through on the promise of a just transition.”
Mr Emerson thanked the leader of the ACT Greens, Shane Rattenbury MLA, for his motion which acknowledged climate change is a collective problem and identified a range of policy areas warranting inclusion in the next ACT Climate Change Strategy.
The proposals in Mr Emerson’s submission were collated through a recent roundtable he hosted at the Assembly with more than 20 local climate organisations, experts and advocates. It is a community-led submission, with all the proposals it contains put forward by Canberrans who want more urgent climate action from the ACT Government. The 35 proposals include:
- Expanding the sustainable household scheme to include e-bikes, and focus safety regulations for e-bikes on appropriate speed limits, not power limits.
- Exploring options for facilitating the introduction of plug-in balcony solar panels to help address the gap in access to electrification opportunities for renters and people living in apartments.
- Funding the establishment of bike buses and walking buses for school children, and trialling 30km/h school zone speed limits as a way of fostering climate-positive habits in the next generation.
- Upgrading school infrastructure to adapt to extreme heat, including mandating air conditioning in all classrooms, minimum shade levels over school playgrounds, and restricting the use of materials like metal surfaces and synthetic turf in playground construction.
- Constructing the Cycling Network in the ACT Active Travel Plan and delivering separated bike lanes on key transport corridors like Northbourne Avenue.
The full submission is available here.
Mr Rattenbury’s motion is available here and Mr Emerson’s amendment can be found here.