Australia's Chief Scientist, Prof Tony Haymet, discusses the opportunities for Australia in the global journey to net zero. 

The Australian Prime Minister’s recent speech to the United Nations highlighted the enormous capacity for renewable energy to power economic growth in Australia and overseas. Anthony Albanese spoke about Australia’s new emission reduction targets and the global shift to net zero.

His speech followed the announcement from China – the world’s largest emitter – that it plans to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 7-10% from peak levels by 2035. This is a highly significant step towards achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

A fork in the road

Like many countries, Australia now stands at a fork in the road. We can invest in clean energy innovation and reap the benefits of new jobs and industries. Or we can delay, and risk economic stagnation in addition to adverse outcomes for human health and wellbeing, biodiversity and ecosystems.

My view is that we must all act now to meet the targets and do so decisively. Half-measures only delay the reckoning and hike up future costs. We need decisive and coordinated action to accelerate the necessary transitions across every sector of the economy. For now, the most effective way to cut emissions at scale is to clean up how we generate electricity – while simultaneously electrifying major industrial sectors. Australia already leads the world in rooftop solar and there is further work underway to make solar energy competitive for heavier industries.

If we want to persuade other nations to stop polluting our shared global atmosphere, we must be among those countries that lead by example. We can do that by working to meet our ambitious domestic targets and working with our trading partners to reduce emissions in global supply chains.

As Australia’s Chief Scientist, I serve on the Climate Change Authority that made recommendations to the Australian Government regarding the 2035 emissions targets – targets that the government has this month accepted. Those targets will shape investment decisions, guide infrastructure planning and send signals to markets.

The scale of the challenge

Sadly, Australia now finds itself in hot water – and that’s not a metaphor. It’s the scientific reality of our rapidly warming oceans. But they are not just warming; they are also rising at unprecedented rates and becoming more acidic (less alkaline). Marine heatwaves are fuelling destructive algal blooms, bleaching our coral reefs, supercharging storms, and threatening coastal eco-systems that have sustained communities and industries for generations.

Inland problems are equally concerning: heightened flooding, worsening bushfires and rising temperatures. Household insurance premiums are becoming unaffordable or simply unavailable in some communities. This puts everyday families at risk of intolerable losses.

Rising to that challenge

The climate crisis is reshaping life across the nation, from our oceans to our insurance premiums, and it’s going to get worse both in Australia and across the world. But we can avoid the harshest impacts by making deep global emissions cuts. Australia has great scientists and is a wealthy country with the resources to address these challenges. Achieving deep cuts by 2035 is within reach – if we choose to act decisively and with unwavering resolve.

Reducing emissions, tonne by tonne, is the most effective way to meet our climate targets. Every fraction of a degree we prevent in global warming helps to reduce extreme weather impacts and to safeguard communities, economies and families – now and in the generations ahead.

Science and technology are crucial to achieving climate goals and maintaining a prosperous economy. They will help us generate low-emissions energy and create the materials and products needed globally in a burgeoning low-carbon economy. That economy offers substantial opportunities and jobs. We will also see the benefits in Australian homes. Investing in the energy efficiency of our households makes them more comfortable, healthier, and more affordable to live in. Similarly, switching to electric vehicles reduces their running costs and cuts air and noise pollution.

The cost of action is significantly less than the cost of doing nothing: billions in economic losses, reduced productivity, escalating healthcare costs, and lives shattered by floods, fires and heat. A recent report from the Climate Change Authority says more than 650,000 properties are already at high risk from climate hazards. The report warns climate change could wipe over $500 billion from the Australian property market by 2030.

History will judge us

Whatever action we take, history will judge us. If we delay the emission reductions, we impose far greater economic and social costs on our grandchildren and their kids. They will face worsening fires, floods, droughts, algal blooms and sea-level rise – as well as significant economic harm and irreversible ecological damage. They will ask why we did not use our available tools and technology to cut emissions sooner and more deeply.