Committee for Geelong backs more action on carbon emissions

THE Committee for Geelong has joined stakeholder groups from cities across Australia in urging Australia’s 2030 carbon emissions reduction target to be lifted.

The committee is one of the members of the Committee for Cities and Regions Network, which issued a joint statement last week welcoming the Morrison Government’s adoption of a target of net zero by 2050 but stressing it “must be supported by a clear, accountable and ambitious roadmap for successful implementation in our cities and in our regions”.

“We urge the government to seize the momentum by lifting the 2030 carbon emissions reduction target ambition and committing to significant investment in the acceleration of clean technologies, to keep the country on track towards meeting its zero emissions goals.

“Overcoming domestic political inertia is key to a more ambitious roadmap to 2030.

“Regardless of what Australia does, the momentum around the world to reduce the carbon footprint will impact on the whole Australian economy.”

Committee for Geelong chief executive officer Jennifer Cromarty congratulated the Business Council of Australia and the Committee for Cities and Regions Network for their advocacy to the Morrison Government.

“We are encouraged by a range of federal government announcements including the Future Fuels and Vehicles Strategy and also the Victorian Government’s Climate Change Strategy which includes a target to reduce emissions from 2005 levels by 45-50 per cent by 2030,” Ms Cromarty said.

A key recommendation in the Committee for Geelong’s “Resilient Geelong” research paper, published in late 2020, was to seize the opportunity to build a better, greener economy for the future and explore the possibility of Geelong becoming a site for the Beyond Zero Emissions Million Jobs Plan.

Proposed by independent think tank Beyond Zero Emissions, the Million Jobs Plan outlines how renewables and low emissions projects could deliver 1.8 million new jobs in the regions and communities where they are needed most within five years.

“The Beyond Zero Emissions Million Jobs project is a tremendous opportunity for the region to support emissions reduction while also outlining the jobs in green and circular economies,” Ms Cromarty said.

“Future economy jobs can be delivered, as an example, through investment in clean tech, sustainable social housing developments, increased uptake of renewable energy sources and in developing the required infrastructure to increase public and active transport usage.

“Having a clear policy direction from the federal government is vital but there is much we can do as a community to take action at a time when urgency is key.”