Australia passes key climate law to cut emissions

In order to meet a goal to cut emissions by the end of the decade, Australia passed a key piece of climate legislation targeting its biggest polluters.

More than 200 facilities will need to reduce their pollution by 4.9% a year by 2030 from July 1 after the Labor government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese secured the support of the left-wing Australian Greens party and independent senators.

Albanese pledged to end the nation's reputation as an international climate laggard in May, and passed more ambitious targets to reduce emissions 43% by 2030 from 2005 levels, a platform that Albanese promised to pass in elections last May. Australia has struggled to control pollution from its massive coal and gas industries, which are major contributors to the nation's $422 billion $282 billion in resources and energy exports.

The safeguard mechanism covers a quarter of Australia's pollution, from liquefied natural gas plants to coal mines and aluminum smelters. The planned curbs would deliver about 205 million tons of abatement by the end of the decade.

Australia still has a long way to reach its climate targets. The current baseline for emissions was 21% lower in the year to September 2022 than in the year to June 2005, which was 21% lower than that in the year to September 2022.

There was a contention with the Greens about the possibility of unlimited use of carbon offsets. Under the new legislation, major polluters will have to justify their reasoning for relying on carbon credits to meet more than 30% of their emissions cuts.

Read more: Australia has started a Climate Charm Offensive to Land UN Summit.

As soon as they begin production, the new gas fields must offset their emissions, threatening to increase costs for operations with higher levels of carbon dioxide. The Greens party claimed that the laws will end half of the 116 new coal and gas projects in Australia. Albanese and his party insist that they don't rule out new fossil fuel developments.

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