The Carbon Brief Profile: Australia

Friday, 5 April 2019

In the seventh article of a series on how key emitters are responding to climate change, Carbon Brief looks at Australia’s complex climate politics and rising fossil fuel exports.[contentbox id=”29536″]Climate change is a top tier political issue in Australia. Debates over climate and energy policy have triggered several of the numerous changes of prime minister in recent years.Australia had the world’s 15th largest greenhouse gas emissions in 2015 and its citizens’ per-capita contribution is around three times the global average.It is the world’s second largest coal exporter and recently became the top exporter of liquified natural gas (LNG). Its electricity system remains heavily reliant on coal, despite ramping up the use of gas and renewables, especially rooftop solar.It is also highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, including extreme heat, drought, bushfires and agricultural impacts.Based on its current trajectory, Australia is off track on its international pledge to cut emissions 26-28% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels.Opinion polls suggest the opposition Labor party will win the upcoming federal election, expected in May.(Update 24/05/2019: The Liberal-National Coalition’s victory in the May election came as a shock to many commentators who thought climate change was going to be a decisive factor that would lead to a win for Labor. The result has raised concerns that policies to tackle global warming, such as a transition away from coal, will not be at the top of the government’s agenda in the coming years. To get a sense of the different parties’ positions on climate and energy issues, see our summary of manifesto pledges made in the run-up to the election.)

Australia’s economy ranks globally in terms of gross domestic product (), just after Russia and South Korea. Its population sits at – 53rd in the world – and is projected to increase to by 2050.The country has recently witnessed political turbulence, with of prime minister over the past decade. The current government has been in power since 2013 and is formed of a longtime alliance between the right-leaning and parties (L/NP), together known as the “Coalition”.The Liberal prime minister has held office since August 2018. He was preceded by from 2015-2018 and from 2013-2015, both Liberals. The left-leaning (ALP) was in power from 2007 to 2013 under and .The country will return to the polls this year. The date is flexible, but widely to be in . Opinion generally show a for Labor, now led by .Climate change policy has a history in Australia and has been . show it as a top issue among voters in the federal election. Tens of thousands of Australian schoolchildren recently the global .Around 58% of Australians consider climate change a “major threat” to their country, second only to the 59% who considered a major threat, according to a 2017 from the . Another 2018 from the thinktank found 60% want coal-fired power to be phased out within 20 years. The same survey found 73% of people are concerned about climate change, a five-year high.Lobbyists and the media are also in Australia. The spent AUS$5m (£2.7m) last year on political campaigning, compared to AUS$183k (£99k) by environmental NGOs. Australia’s media landscape is among the in the world. The two main newspaper firms – the more conservative and more progressive – are strongly polarised politically, according to the 2018 , on .Australia has never hosted a meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (). In 1998 it signed the , which committed developed country signatories to emission reduction targets. But Australia until 2007, following the election of a Labor government. It the on 9 November 2016.

§ Paris pledge

land-use and forestry data Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research submitted pledge Paris climate talks. This equivalent

“This effort takes account of Australia’s unique national circumstances, including a growing population and economy, role as a leading global resources provider, our current energy infrastructure, and higher than average abatement costs.”

Climate Change Authority previously recommended Emissions Reduction Fund scheme plan energy productivity 23tCO2e in 2015 World Bank UN population projections rated Climate Action Tracker

“To meet its ‘insufficient’ 2030 emissions targets, Australian emissions should decrease by an annual rate of 1.5-1.7% until 2030; instead, with current policies, they are set to increase by an annual rate of around 0.3% per year.”

Climate Transparency says analysis Australian National University disputed review

Image - Scott Morrison (right), Australia’s prime minister, arrives at the G20 in Argentina in 2018. Credit: G20 Argentina Flickr. - Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison (right), arrives at the G20 in Argentina Credit: G20 Argentina via Flickr (note)say carry forward credit yet to be decided Copenhagen accord rising to a 15-25%said stuck to pledged part cumulative emissions budget on track flexibility mechanisms first Kyoto commitment period Umbrella Group negotiating bloc characterised Cartagena Dialogue index

Australia’s annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions stood at 550m tonnes of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e) in 2015 including (LULUCF), according to compiled by the (PIK). (See “note on infographic” at the end of this article for details of this data. Note that LULUCF emissions were negative in 2015).Emissions excluding LULUCF have almost doubled since 1970. They peaked at 700MtCO2e in 2011 and stood at 630MtCO2e in 2016.In August 2015, Australia its climate towards the “nationally determined contribution” (NDC) came under Liberal prime minister Tony Abbott.The pledge promised a 26-28% emissions reduction by 2030 compared to 2005 levels, including land use. This is to a 22–25% cut below 1990 levels including land use, but a 3-6% rise when land-use emissions are excluded. This sector is a net sink in Australia.The pledge says the target is “comparable to the targets of other advanced economies” and that Australia will achieve the upper 28% of its target “should circumstances allow”. It adds:The government’s independent advisors, the (CCA), had a target of a 40-60% cut in emissions by 2030 compared to 2000 levels. Australia’s pledge represents only a 19-22% cut on emissions in 2000.The main policy outlined in Australia’s climate pledge was its (ERF) (see more in the next section) and a to source 23% of electricity from renewables by 2020.Several post-2020 policies were under development, it said, including a for a 40% improvement in – the amount of energy needed to generate each unit of GDP – between 2015 and 2030.Australia’s per-capita emissions stood at , according to PIK and data, around nine times those of India and more than three times the world average of 7tCO2e.Australia says its pledge represents a 50-52% cut in per-capita emissions by 2030, compared to 2005 levels. The 28% by 2030 pledge would see per-capita emissions fall to 16tCO2e in 2030, from 31tCO2e in 2005, according to PIK data and .The pledge is as “insufficient” by (CAT), an independent analysis by three research organisations. “If all government targets were within this range, warming would reach over 2C and up to 3C,” it says.There is disagreement over whether Australia is on track to meet its climate targets.According to CAT, a current lack of policies means it will not meet the targets within its pledge and is actually on a trajectory in line with 3-4C warming. CAT adds:, a research and NGO partnership, also Australia’s GHG trajectory and NDC target are not compatible with the Paris goals. Policy is failing to address the need for structural change, with effective policies missing in every sector, it says.In contrast, a recent from the finds the Paris target will be met five years early, though its findings are . In December 2017, a government said Australia was “on track” to meet its target.Critics these assessments use “creative accounting” and take credit for a large decline in deforestation that happened before the Paris Agreement was signed. Australia is also trying to for overachieving on its Kyoto targets, using the surplus to meet its Paris goals. The final rules on whether this should be allowed have .Similar issues cloud Australia’s progress on its earlier climate pledges and goals.As part of the 2009 , the country pledged a voluntary 5% reduction on 2000 levels by 2020, reduction, if the world struck a strong climate deal. The CCA has these stronger conditions have been met and recommended a 15% target, saying a 5% target is not “a credible start”. The government has the 5% pledge.In 2010, the country to reduce emissions 0.5% below 1990 levels by 2020 as of the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. The 5% Copenhagen pledge was used to calculate this legally binding target, which takes the form of a . Australia is to meet the target, helped by the use of “” and carry-over from the .Australia is part of the informal at international climate talks, which is mainly made up of rich countries from several continents. The group has often been as less enthusiastic towards international climate cooperation than other developed countries.Australia is also part of the , an informal discussion group of countries that say they are committed to becoming low-carbon.It is one of the worst-performing countries both for national climate policy and for hindering progress in international negotiations, according to a recent NGO performance . This ranked Australia 55th out of 60 countries.

§ Climate policy

climate policies adjusted cancelled scrapped large difference removed national energy guarantee ousted him dropping the NEG

Image - Greenpeace protesters suspend a banner from Parliament House, depicting prime minister Scott Morrison, holding a piece of coal. Canberra, Australia, 10 September 2018. Credit: Sam Nerrie / Alamy Stock Photo. - Greenpeace protesters suspend a banner from Parliament House, depicting Prime Minister Scott Morrison, holding a piece of coal. Canberra, Australia, 10 Sep 2018. Credit: Sam Nerrie / Alamy Stock Photo. PJYRJX (note)ERF Direct Action Plan reverse auction award contracts concerns cost ability additionality land sector considered Clean Energy Regulator cancelled review rebranded “Climate Solutions Fund”part criticised said

“Our government will take, and is taking, meaningful, practical, sensible, responsible action on climate change without damaging our economy or your family budget.”

said climate change plan called supports plan green bank plan recently Green party announced policies solar fuels All states and territories targeting

Over the past decade, several flagship have been announced and then or , including a economy-wide carbon tax. The current policy void means the next government could make a to Australia’s emissions.In August 2018, Malcolm Turnbull an emissions reduction target for the power industry from his main proposed energy policy – the (NEG) – due to pressure from his party’s rightwing. This same group later as prime minister, with Scott Morrison taking the helm and altogether.The “centrepiece” of government emissions reduction efforts is now the , previously called the . This uses a to for emissions cuts. Contracts go to the cheapest bids from businesses, local councils, state governments and farmers.There are ongoing over the ERF, including its to the taxpayer, to deliver promised emissions cuts and the and permanence of any reductions.Most ERF projects are in the , though funding has also gone to new fossil fuel projects cleaner than the activities they replace. The , which runs the fund, last year AUS$24m (£13m) of contracts that had failed to deliver.The scheme will need to contribute “less of Australia’s emissions reduction task over time”, according to a 2017 by the CCA. “[O]ther policies will need to take up the challenge of decarbonising Australia’s economy and deliver structural change”, it said, though the ERF should be “built on as part of the policy tool kit” to meet Australia’s Paris goals.Morrison has the ERF as the and promised it an extra AUS$2bn (£1.1bn), as of a AUS$3.5bn (£1.9bn) “Climate Solutions Package”. The pledge has been for falling far short of what is needed to tackle Australia’s emissions, particularly due to the shortage of projects in the emissions-intensive power and industry sectors. Announcing the funding in February, Morrison :In its latest budget, published earlier this month, the Morrison government this new AUS$2bn of funding would need to last for 15 years, instead of 10 as initially proposed.The opposition Labor party’s would raise Australia’s emissions reduction target for 2030 from a 26-28% to a 45% cut on 2005 levels. Labor leader Bill Shorten has climate change “a disaster”. His party would bring in a new emissions trading scheme and target “net zero pollution” by 2050.In an effort to create cross-party consensus, Labor still the NEG and its emissions reduction mechanism, both dropped by the Liberals. The party would also raise the emissions reduction target.In the event this compromise fails, Labor has outlined a AUS$15bn (£8bn) to cut emissions in the energy system. Of this, AUS$10bn (£5.4bn) will go to the government-owned Labor established in 2012, including for a AUS$1bn (£540m) to begin exporting hydrogen. It ruled out taxpayer support for new coal power plants.Australia’s – which could hold the balance of power in the senate after the elections – has also a host of climate . These include 100% renewable electricity by 2030, bans on new fossil fuel extraction and a phaseout of coal exports by 2030, in favour of renewable exports such as “”.Regional climate ambition in Australia is generally far stronger than at the federal level. , bar Western Australia, have strong renewable energy targets, net-zero emissions targets, or both. South Australia is net-zero emissions by 2050.

§ Coal

Embedded component (note)BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2018 Highcharts has operating coal plants Global Coal Plant Tracker 10 years shelved says ageing summer blackouts political issue could grow less reliable increase demand committing some factions one assessment fossil fuel subsidies account fourth largest China India Indonesia

Image - Aerial view of an open-cut coal mine in Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia. Credit: redbrickstock.com / Alamy Stock Photo. - Aerial view of an open cut coal mine in Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia. Credit: redbrickstock.com / Alamy Stock Photo. C2MEXD (note)expects fugitive methane emissions widespread new thermal coal mine proposed legal challenges self-financing numerous banks ruling out most valuable export second largest exporter 386m tonnes in 201836bn) in earningsexpected to grow significant destinations

In 2017, 61% of Australia’s electricity came from coal, as the chart below shows. However, coal power output has fallen from a peak in 2006, due to the rising use of gas and renewables. Around a third of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions come from the power sector.Electricity generation in Australia by fuel, 1985-2017 (terawatt hours). Source: . Chart by Carbon Brief using .As of January 2019, Australia 24 gigawatts (GW) of , the world’s 11th largest fleet, according to the . It has been since a new coal power plant was commissioned and 9GW of planned capacity has been or cancelled since 2010. There are currently no new coal plants in the pipeline. Nine coal power stations have been retired over the past five years in Australia, CAT.Much of Australia’s coal fleet is , posing questions over where the country will source its electricity in future. The risk of – a major – as old coal plants become and higher temperatures peak .The government is considering support for new coal power investment before the election, urged on by of the ruling party. According to , Australia already has some of the world’s highest per capita.Natural resources, including coal and metals such as iron ore, uranium and gold, are a major part of Australia’s economy. They for 8% of GDP and 70% of exports.Australia mined 500m tonnes of coal in 2017, making it the world’s producer after , and the US, and just ahead of . Mines are located mainly in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.The Australian government its coal-mining activities to increase, leading to a rise in emissions in the sector. In particular, this is due to several “gassy” coal mines returning to full production after temporary declines, leading to increased .There has been opposition to a in Queensland by Indian energy giant Adani, including a series of . Adani is now a smaller version of the project after ruled out funding.Last year, a New South Wales judge cited climate change impacts when another planned coal mine in the Hunter Valley.Coal is this year set to become Australia’s . The country only consumes a quarter of the coal it produces and is the world’s after Indonesia.Coal exports were , worth some AUS$67bn (£, and . Japan, China and India are all .

§ Renewables

more than tripled households rising to a third provides almost non-existent more solar farms More than a million around an eighth set to build solar thermal

Image - Rooftop solar panels in South Australia. Credit: Andrey Moisseyev / Alamy Stock Photo. - Rooftop solar panels in South Australia. Credit: Andrey Moisseyev / Alamy Stock Photo. H8BYF5 (note)4.6GW more than a third 6.6GW additions first offshore wind farm record-breaking Snowy Hydro expansion Snowy 2.0 approved produces around 90%interconnector Hydro Tasmania major plans pumped hydro storage battery of the nation 20% of electricity expanding earlier renewables goal scheme requires fixed proportion value of the certificates large-scale generation Analysis no plans Alan Finkel review according to analysis promised on track public support target Victoria Northern Territory regularly reaches headlines expected widely praised tornadoes caused overly-sensitive never longstanding has

Australia’s renewable capacity has increased rapidly over the past decade. By 2017, production from renewables other than hydro had on 2007 levels, providing 10% of electricity.Australia has one of the highest rooftop solar rates in the world: a fifth of all have it installed, in some states. It around 4% of Australia’s electricity.Solar farms are also on the rise from an base five years ago. The country currently has under construction than its total solar farm capacity. solar water heaters are installed on of homes, while South Australia is the world’s largest plant.Onshore wind capacity was in 2017, of which is in South Australia. This compares to 7.2GW for solar, of which is rooftop solar. Significantly more are planned for both. Australia has yet to approve its .Australian renewable capacity had a year in 2018. Around 10GW of new solar and wind capacity is expected to be installed during 2018 and 2019.Hydropower provides around 5% of electricity generation, bringing the renewable total to 15%. Its output has remained relatively constant for decades, with its share in the electricity mix falling as other sources increase.Australia’s largest hydro scheme, located in the south-east of the country, has a total capacity of 4GW, most of which was completed 45 years ago or more. A 2GW , known as , was in December.The island state Tasmania of its electricity from hydro and exports to the mainland during peak demand via an . has for new and a second interconnector, as part of its “” scheme to double its renewable capacity to 5GW.In 2009, Australia set a target for to come from renewables by 2020, an . Its to achieve this high energy users to source a of electricity from renewable sources by buying certificates, with the decreasing each year.A sub-target alone means 23.5% of generation will come from renewables in 2020, according to the government. indicates the overall 20% target has already been surpassed.The current government has to set a post-2020 target, however, despite being advised to do so by its chief scientist in a 2017 .Around 70% of Australians back a higher renewable electricity target, a recent poll. Australia could reach 50% renewables in 2025 and 100% by the early 2030s if its current rate of expansion continued, has found. The Labor party has to deliver 50% renewables by 2030, if it gets into power.Several states have far stronger renewable targets. South Australia is to its goal of 75% renewable electricity by 2025 and there is for setting a “100% by 2030” . and the are targeting 50% renewable electricity by 2030. Tasmania already 100% renewables generation.In 2017, South Australia made after Tesla built the world’s then-largest lithium ion battery in the state. The battery is to pay for itself within a few years and has been for boosting grid stability.The battery was built after statewide blackouts in 2016 by downing power lines and triggering windfarm protections, which have since been modified.Australia has had any nuclear power due to bipartisan opposition. However, it the world’s largest known uranium resources and is the third largest exporter of the material.

§ Oil and gas

widespread onshore

Image - A liquified natural gas carrier off the coast of Karratha, Western Australia. Credit: Jack Picone / Alamy Stock Photo. - A liquified natural gas carrier off the coast of Karratha, Western Australia. Credit: Jack Picone / Alamy Stock Photo. A1YN02 (note)largest liquefied natural gas 11%met importing LNG aims to fugitive methane emissions risen concerns biggest driver projected government industry disputed estimated 0.3%peaked nearly all its oil ordered

Image - Duke Energy lowering a pipeline as part of the Tasmania Natural Gas Project. Credit: Bill Bachman / Alamy Stock Photo. - Duke Energy lowering a pipeline as part of the Tasmania Natural Gas Project. Credit: Bill Bachman / Alamy Stock Photo. AT2YMW (note)Equinor plans Great Australian Bight argue export credit agency Efic criticised opening the door fossil-fuel support

Australia has gas resources both on and offshore, particularly off the north-west coast. It also has high unconventional gas resources.It is one of the world’s exporters of (LNG), alongside Qatar, with seven operating LNG terminals and three more under construction. Western Australia alone accounts for of global LNG capacity.Domestic gas use has also risen in recent years. It a quarter of the country’s energy needs in 2017, up from 16% in 1997. Some analysts say eastern states will need to start to meet demand, even as other parts of the country increase exports.The country export 80Mt of LNG per year by 2020, up from 24Mt in 2013-14. This is expected to lead to a rise in Australia’s emissions due to electricity use in the plants that liquify LNG, as well as during extraction.Fugitive emissions from oil, gas and coal have 41% since 2005 and are expected to rise further by 2030. There are also that these emissions could be underreported.LNG production is currently the of overall emissions growth in the country and is to offset all the savings achieved through Australia’s 2020 renewables target.The current and argue LNG exports cut emissions abroad by displacing coal, although the extent of this effect is .Oil use has increased by a quarter since 1997, though its proportion in the energy mix has stayed level at around a third. Australia’s oil reserves are an of the world total.Petroleum production in 2000, although exports are now increasing. Australia imports and exports 75% of its own crude production. Last year, the government a fuel security review after it was warned the country had only a few weeks of petrol, diesel and aviation fuel in its reserves.Norwegian oil firm has for experimental oil drilling in the , a huge bay off the south coast of Australia. Critics the deepwater project would put pristine coastline and marine life at risk of an oil spill.Australia’s , , has been by NGOs for supporting fossil-fuel projects around the world. A bill to expand Efic’s powers is expected to pass in early April, potentially to even more .

§ Transport

expects 80% of the global market fuel-efficiency standards Previous proposals cut down lags behind according EV trade body total motor sales small incentives report EV strategy lacks support measures proposed

Transport accounts for 14% of Australia’s emissions. The government the sector’s emissions to increase over the next decade. Unlike , Australia has no mandatory . were by the ruling coalition after lobbying from industry.It also other countries in the rollout of electric vehicles (EVs). Just 2,300 were sold in 2017, to Australia’s , or 0.2% of . There are for lower emissions cars.A recent senate select committee outlined options to increase EV uptake, including consideration of a national target. In February, the government released a one-page that still , according to critics.Labor recently a national EV target of 50% new car sales by 2030, as well as fuel emissions standards for conventional vehicles.[contentbox id=”29536″]

§ Agriculture and forestry

large agricultural emissions due to methane released around 65m sheep

Image - A herd of sheep on the Tin Horse Highway in Western Australia. Credit: Julie Mowbray / Alamy Stock Photo. - A herd of sheep on the Tin Horse Highway in Western Australia. Credit: Julie Mowbray / Alamy Stock Photo. E1W8MN (note)relatively steady report pointing

Australia has , principally from its large livestock population. The country has 26m cows, 2.2m pigs and . Nitrous oxide released from fertilised soils is also a large contributor.Agricultural emissions have remained for several decades, but a 2013 government-commissioned said this was likely to change. It projected an annual 1.2% increase up to 2050, driven by rising meat and crop exports. By 2030, emissions would have risen 10% on 2018 levels, the report said.Australia’s land sector is a large net emissions sink, with the latest climate projections to “historical lows” in recent years. On balance, 22MtCO2e was absorbed by the land sector in 2018, the report says, but this is set to shrink to 14MtCO2 in 2020 and 1MtCO2e in 2030.The current lows are due to forest cover increases that are not expected to continue, the report says. This declining carbon sink is one of the main drivers of Australia’s emissions “growth” up to 2020.

§ Climate laws

established modelled closely Committee on Climate Change failed shrunk significantly closed Climate Commission resurrected Climate Council greenhouse and energy reporting act reporting renewable electricity target ERF act

Australia’s CCA is a statutory body in 2011 to advise the government on climate targets and policy. It is on the UK’s (CCC).All its proposals need to meet certain criteria, including being economically “efficient”, equitable and consistent with Australia’s trade objectives. Former prime minister Tony Abbott tried but to get rid of the CCA, though he did remove its advisory role on emission targets. The body has since .In 2013, Abbot the , an independent science and public education body established by the government in 2011. However, it was as the , a non-profit organisation, just days later.Meanwhile, a 2007 introduced a single national framework for on emissions, in part to underpin any future emissions trading scheme.Australia’s and are also set in law, while a 2010 obliges commercial buildings to disclose their energy efficiency when sold or leased.

§ Impacts and adaptation

national communication already risen depending on hottest summer on record multiple other Bureau of Meteorology says Murray-Darling Basin already paper authority three mass fish deaths concluded report less suitable

Image - Black Kite flee a bushfire in Northern Territory, Australia on 9 December 2016. Credit: Brad Leue / Alamy Stock Photo. - Black Kite flee a bushfire in Northern Territory, Australia on 9 December 2016. Credit: Brad Leue / Alamy Stock Photo. HTWDYA (note)linked to increased risk length complex concern likely half coast Great Barrier Reef severely damaged marine heatwaves ocean acidification opposed lobbied against Unesco list

Image - Coral off the coast of Townsville, Australia, November 2018. Credit: Daisy Dunne / Carbon Brief. - Coral bleaching off the coast of Townsville, Australia. Credit: Daisy Dunne / Carbon Brief. (note)national adaptation framework national research facility reports strategy committed redirected included Green Climate Fund published ruled out replenishment round bilateral climate funding analysis Indonesia

Article information

Note on infographic

Data for energy consumption comes from BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2018.

Data for greenhouse gas emissions by sector is a combination of two datasets compiled by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and EDGAR.

Values for methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and fluorinated gases cover all sectors, including LULUCF, and come from the PIK primap database v2.0. Values for GHG emissions from LULUCF also come from the PIK primap database, however these are only available to 2015, and from the earlier v1.2 of the database. Note that LULUCF data for 2015 is an extrapolation made by PIK from previous years.

The remaining values come from the EDGAR CO2 emissions database, downloaded from the website OpenClimateData. The EDGAR categories described in full are as follows: Buildings (non-industrial stationary combustion: includes residential and commercial combustion activities); Transport (mobile combustion: road and rail and ship and aviation); Non-combustion (industrial process emissions and agriculture and waste); Industry (industrial combustion outside power and heat generation, including combustion for industrial manufacturing and fuel production); Power & heat (power and heat generation plants).

Combining GHG emissions in 2015 (bar LULUCF) from PIK primap database 2.0 database and LULUCF emissions in 2015 from PIK database v1.2 also shows Australia has the world’s 15th largest greenhouse gas emissions, including LULUCF, in 2015.

Per capita emissions in 2015 come from combining above 2015 figure for GHG emissions and Australia’s population in 2015 from the World Bank.

Australia’s pledge to reduce its emissions 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2030 comes from its NDC submitted to the UN in 2015.

Infographic by Tom Prater for Carbon Brief

Australia is experiencing higher temperatures, more frequent and intense extreme heat events, and higher fire risk and drought conditions due to climate change, says the country’s 2017 to the UNFCCC. “These changes in climate are expected to continue,” it adds.Annual mean temperatures in the country have by around 1.1C since the late 1800s. They are expected to reach to 1.6-5.3C, future emissions.This year, Australia experienced its , with the national average temperature around 2.1C above the long-term average, as well as heat records broken. Long-term climate trends played a role in the heatwaves, its .Drought is seen as a particularly serious issue in Australia. There are strong concerns about the in the southeastern interior, one of Australia’s most significant agricultural areas, which is being affected by climate change. Rainfall patterns are changing and extreme storms, droughts and floods are becoming more frequent and intense, according to a recent by the region’s .The report came in response to at lakes within the basin, which a scientific panel were caused by drought as well as over-extraction.A 2015 from University of Melbourne researchers outlined how many of Australia’s major food commodities could be affected by climate change, from beef and dairy production to wheat and barley. Up to 70% of Australia’s winegrowing regions with a Mediterranean climate will be for grape growing by 2050, the report said.Climate change has also been an of bushfires and of the fire season. However, overall effects are since climate change can impact the various risk factors of wildfires in different ways.There is also about sea-level rise, which is to be close to the expected global average of up to a metre by 2100. The country has already seen increased rates of extreme sea levels. Around of Australia’s population lives within 7km of the .Australia’s is already being by coral bleaching due to and . Two major bleaching events in 2016 and 2017 affected 93% and 83% of coral in the reef respectively. The government has – and – efforts to add the Great Barrier Reef to ’s “in danger” .The country first set out its approach to adaptation in its 2007 . It also has a to support management of climate risks with on “priority themes”. In 2015, it released a climate adaptation towards climate resilience in Australia.In 2015, Australia to giving at least AUS$1bn (£540m) in international climate finance to vulnerable countries over five years. This was from the existing foreign aid budget and $187m previously pledged to the (GCF). Government budget papers this month imply Australia has contributions to GCF’s this year.Australia does also give significant . Overall, it was the 10th largest international climate finance donor in 2015 and 2016, according to Carbon Brief . The highest transfer to a single country went to .

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