Climate Action Merribek: people in Brunswick, Coburg, Fawkner and Glenroy wanting action on climate change

Delivering IPCC report to Peter Khalil MP to #SafeGuardOurClimate

March 25, 2023 at 6:17 pm John Englart Leave a comment

Merribek citizens delivered the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 6th Assessment synthesis climate report to Labor MP for Wills Peter Khalil office on Friday March 24. Along with this report a transcript of the UN Secretary General’s speech launching the report was also handed over, as well as a statement from 6 Pacific nations calling for the phaseout of coal and gas. (see below for full details)

Peter is now part of the Federal Government. But he has had little discussion with climate and environment groups in his electorate over climate policy, particularly the implementation of the proposed Safeguard mechanism. He had promised the establishment of a Wills Climate and Environment Advisory Group since his re-election in May 2022.

IPCC Synthesis Report released

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on March 20 released the Synthesis report of the 6th assessment cycle. This report summarises 6 previous reports issued over the last 5 years. The reeport provides the final warning to implement climate solutions before global warming accelerates out of our control.

If we don’t reach a minimum of halving emissions globally by 2030, we are install for triggering tipping points in the climate system accelerating climate change pushing earth into a hothouse climate trajectory, a rapid escalation of climate disasters which will increase conflict and may result in civilisational collapse.

We need to reduce emissions rapidly, across all sectors. Here are 10 key facts from the IPCC report:

1. Human-induced global warming of 1.1 degrees C has spurred changes to the Earth’s climate that are unprecedented in recent human history.

Human caused climate change is unequivical.  Every 0.5 degree C of global temperature rise will cause clearly discernible increases in the frequency and severity of heat extremes, heavy rainfall events and regional droughts. Similarly, heatwaves that, on average, arose once every 10 years in a climate with little human influence will likely occur 4.1 times more frequently with 1.5 degrees C of warming, 5.6 times with 2 degrees C and 9.4 times with 4 degrees C — and the intensity of these heatwaves will also increase by 1.9 degrees C, 2.6 degrees C and 5.1 degrees C respectively.

2. Climate impacts on people and ecosystems are more widespread and severe than expected, and future risks will escalate rapidly with every fraction of a degree of warming.

About half of the global population currently contends with severe water scarcity for at least one month per year, while higher temperatures are enabling the spread of vector-borne diseases, such as malaria, West Nile virus and Lyme disease. Climate change has also slowed improvements in agricultural productivity in middle and low latitudes, with crop productivity growth shrinking by a third in Africa since 1961. And since 2008, extreme floods and storms have forced over 20 million people from their homes every year.

Even limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degree C is not safe for all. At this level of warming, for example, 950 million people across the world’s drylands will experience water stress, heat stress and desertification, while the share of the global population exposed to flooding will rise by 24%.

3. Adaptation measures can effectively build resilience, but more finance is needed to scale solutions.

Measures to build resilience are still largely small-scale, reactive and incremental, with most focusing on immediate impacts or near-term risks. This disparity between today’s levels of adaptation and those required persists in large part due to limited finance. According to the IPCC, developing countries alone will need $127 billion per year by 2030 and $295 billion per year by 2050 to adapt to climate change.

Australia still hasn’t prepared a detailed National Climate Risk Assessment, and a framework of Climate Adaptation plans. It has been left up to States and Municipal Government to draw up and implement minimal adaptation plans.

The IPCC found that with sufficient support, proven and readily available adaptation solutions can build resilience to climate risks and, in many cases, simultaneously deliver broader sustainable development benefits. Through Ecosystem-based adaptation communities can adapt to impacts that are already devastating lives and livelihoods, while also safeguarding biodiversity, improving health outcomes, bolstering food security, delivering economic benefits and enhancing carbon sequestration. 

4. Some climate impacts are already so severe they cannot be adapted to, leading to losses and damages.

There are soft and hard limits to adaptation. Soft limits often involve economic, political and social obstacles constraining implementation, such as lack of technical support or inadequate funding that does not reach the communities where it’s needed most. “Hard” limits to adaptation, where climate impacts from 1.1 degrees C of global warming are becoming so frequent and severe that no existing adaptation strategies can fully avoid losses and damages. We are starting to see this in the tropics with extreme heat, and tropical coastal communities and islands being inundated by sea level rise, reducing agriculture and fresh water, bleaching of coral reefs greatly reducing fish abundance.

5. Global GHG emissions peak before 2025 in 1.5 degrees C-aligned pathways.

Changing course to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees C — with no or limited overshoot — will instead require deep GHG emissions reductions in the near-term. In modelled pathways that limit global warming to this goal, GHG emissions peak immediately and before 2025 at the latest. They then drop rapidly, declining 43% by 2030 and 60% by 2035, relative to 2019 levels. Remember these are global targets. Australia as a top industrial country and carbon polluter needs to achieve even greater ambition.

Present nationally determined contributions or NDCs, WRI research finds that they would reduce GHG emissions by just 7% from 2019 levels by 2030, in contrast to the 43% associated with limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C.

6. The world must rapidly shift away from burning fossil fuels — the number one cause of the climate crisis.

The report categorically states that “Projected CO2 emissions from existing fossil fuel infrastructure without additional
abatement would exceed the remaining carbon budget for 1.5°C (50%)”

7. We also need urgent, systemwide transformations to secure a net-zero, climate-resilient future.

While fossil fuels are the number one source of GHG emissions, deep emission cuts are necessary across all of society to combat the climate crisis. Power generation, buildings, industry, and transport are responsible for close to 80% of global emissions while agriculture, forestry and other land uses account for the remainder.

The report also highlights the many positive solutions and actions that can be undertaken.

For the transport system, for instance. Drastically cutting emissions will require urban planning that minimizes the need for travel, as well as the build-out of shared, public and nonmotorized transport, such as rapid transit and bicycling in cities. Such a transformation will also entail increasing the supply of electric passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and buses, coupled with wide-scale installation of rapid-charging infrastructure, investments in zero-carbon fuels for shipping and aviation and more.

8. Carbon removal is now essential to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C.

Deep decarbonization across all systems while building resilience won’t be enough to achieve global climate goals. The IPCC finds that all pathways that limit warming to 1.5 degrees C — with no or limited overshoot — depend on some quantity of carbon removal. These approaches encompass both natural solutions, such as sequestering and storing carbon in trees and soil, as well as more nascent technologies that pull carbon dioxide directly from the air. All carbon removal approaches have merits and drawbacks.

9. Climate finance for both mitigation and adaptation must increase dramatically this decade.

The IPCC finds that public and private finance flows for fossil fuels today far surpass those directed toward climate mitigation and adaptation. Thus, while annual public and private climate finance has risen by upwards of 60% since the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report, much more is still required to achieve global climate change goals. For instance, climate finance will need to increase between 3 and 6 times by 2030 to achieve mitigation goals, alone.

Eliminating fossil fuel subsidies can allow redirction of this money for climate finance or the transition. The IPCC report says “Removing fossil fuel subsidies would reduce emissions and yield benefits such as improved public revenue, macroeconomic and sustainability performance;” Australia provides over $11 billion in tax based subsidies to Fossil Fuels.

10. Climate change — as well as our collective efforts to adapt to and mitigate it — will exacerbate inequity should we fail to ensure a just transition.

Households with incomes in the top 10%, including a relatively large share in developed countries, emit upwards of 45% of the world’s GHGs, while those families earning in the bottom 50% account for 15% at most. Yet the effects of climate change already — and will continue to — hit poorer, historically marginalized communities the hardest.

Call by 6 Pacific Nations to phase out coal and gas

On 17th March a block of 6 pacific nations –  Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Tonga, Fiji, Niue, and the Solomon Islands – issued a media statement calling for the phase out of fossil fuels. A copy of the media release was handed to Peter Khalil’s Office.

17th March 2023 – Pacific leaders have closed a three-day Ministerial Dialogue in Port Vila, Vanuatu with an ambitious plan for a “Fossil Fuel Free Pacific” and a call for a global, just and equitable phase out of coal, oil and gas production.

The 2nd Pacific Ministerial Dialogue on Pathways for the Global Just Transition away from Fossil Fuels  was hosted by Vanuatu and Tuvalu with Ministers and officials from Tonga, Fiji, Niue and the Solomon Islands, and representatives from regional organisations including the Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General, Henry Puna.

The formal outcome of the meeting, named the “Port Vila Call for a Just Transition to a Fossil Fuel Free Pacific”, calls for a global phase-out of fossil fuels in a manner that is fair, fast and financed. Specifically, the block of six Pacific countries at the meeting have committed to:

• Adopt a Pacific Island Forum Leaders Declaration for a just transition to a “Fossil Fuel Free Pacific” as soon as possible
• Spearhead the global phase out of coal, oil and gas production in line with global temperature goal of below 1.5ºC, including at the UN Secretary General’s climate summit in September, at COP28, and beyond
• Join the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance and urge major oil and gas producers to join
• Call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and lead the creation of a global alliance to negotiate a new Treaty to govern the end to fossil fuel expansion, equitable phase out of fossil fuels, and a global just transition.
• Redouble efforts to reaffirm, strengthen and codify legal obligations with respect to the global phase out of fossil fuels, including through calling for all nations to support the adoption of the Pacific’s UN General Assembly Resolution seeking an advisory opinion on climate change from the International Court of Justiceⁱ
• Avoid terminology such as “unabated” or “inefficient” that creates loopholes for fossil fuel producers and polluters

Media Release by Vanuatu Government

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UN Secretary General speech on the launch of the IPCC Synthesis Report:

The third document we handed to Peter Khalil’s Office was the text transcript of the speech by Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary General. He highlighted that “Humanity is on thin ice – and that ice is melting fast.” and that “The climate time-bomb is ticking.”

He called the IPCC report “a how-to guide to defuse the climate time-bomb. It is a survival guide for humanity. “

“As it shows, the 1.5-degree limit is achievable. But it will take a quantum leap in climate action. This report is a clarion call to massively fast-track climate efforts by every country and every sector and on every timeframe. In short, our world needs climate action on all fronts — everything, everywhere, all at once.” 

We highlighted a particular section of this speech for Peter Khalil:

“Every country must be part of the solution. Demanding others move first only ensures humanity comes last. The Acceleration Agenda calls for a number of other actions. Specifically:

• No new coal and the phasing out of coal by 2030 in OECD countries and 2040 in all other countries.
• Ending all international public and private funding of coal.
• Ensuring net zero electricity generation by 2035 for all developed countries and 2040 for the rest of the world.
• Ceasing all licensing or funding of new oil and gas – consistent with the findings of the International Energy Agency.
• Stopping any expansion of existing oil and gas reserves.
• Shifting subsidies from fossil fuels to a just energy transition.
• Establishing a global phase down of existing oil and gas production compatible with the 2050 global net zero target.

UN Secretary General Speech at launch of the IPCC Synthesis Report

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Climate Solutions

The IPCC identified many tools and solutions for addressing climate change. These are highlighted in Figure 7 of the report, below:

References:

• Adaptation of Sophie Boehm and Clea Schumer, March 20, 2023, World Resources Institute, 10 Big Findings from the 2023 IPCC Report on Climate Change https://www.wri.org/insights/2023-ipcc-ar6-synthesis-report-climate-change-findings
• IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report 2023 – Summary for Policymakers Report https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/syr/
• UN Secretary General, 20 March, 2023, Secretary-General’s video message for press conference to launch the Synthesis Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change https://www.un.org/sg/en/content/sg/statement/2023-03-20/secretary-generals-video-message-for-press-conference-launch-the-synthesis-report-of-the-intergovernmental-panel-climate-change
• Media Release by Vanuatu was by email, but see Fossil Fuel Treaty, 17 March 2023: Block of 6 Pacific countries commit to spearhead global fossil fuel phase-out effort https://fossilfueltreaty.org/fossil-free-pacific

Entry filed under: climate change info, news, Pacific Islands, Politician education, rallies & protests. Tags: IPCC, Peter Khalil, Protest.