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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-10-27 Daily Xml
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Motions

Climate Change Conference

Adjourned debate on motion of Hon. R.A. Simms:

That this council—

1. Notes the significance of the 'Conference of the Parties' (COP26) UN Conference on Climate Change taking place in November in Glasgow;

2. Recognises the latest IPCC report confirmed that the world is on track for 1.5°C of warming; and

3. Calls on the state government to leverage South Australia's global renewable energy leadership, and Adelaide's ranking as the third most livable city in the world, to petition to host a UN Conference of Parties on climate change, as proposed by Business SA.

(Continued from 8 September 2021.)

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (21:38): I rise to indicate that Labor will be supporting the motion in the name of the Hon. Robert Simms. Climate action is core Labor business. We have always heeded the science and acted accordingly. It is a legacy of past Labor governments and premiers that we are immensely proud of.

There is no denying the world has reached another pivotal moment in its response to climate change. It is no longer a question of whether to act but a question of how we are supposed to act to keep dangerous global warming below, if possible, 1.5°C. The international community is fiercely determined to address the climate crisis now more than ever. It is just a shame that our federal government is not.

We see this in the increasingly ambitious commitments that are being made by world leaders across the political spectrum and the increasingly sad, lame, empty promises made by the federal Liberal government. This will be on display for all to see at the upcoming COP26 conference on climate change in Glasgow.

With this determination to make a change comes a growing recognition across the world of the unfortunate reality that Australia is no longer pulling its weight in terms of addressing climate change. While the rest of the world is drafting up their interim 2030 targets, our federal government is only now reluctantly committing to a 2050 target, albeit with a cabinet position being held hostage by the Nationals within their Coalition, and no plan on how the target will be achieved.

Despite the absence of the leadership from the federal government, South Australia has led our country in renewable energy, and that is something that all South Australians are very proud of. With a Malinauskas Labor government in this state, we will continue this legacy. Under the leadership of former premiers Rann and Weatherill, our state Labor governments experienced an uptake of solar that is unrivalled still across the country.

In 2017, we built the world's then biggest lithium-ion battery and, in 2020, 60 per cent of our energy was supplied through renewable sources. In addition, in this place under Labor, South Australia was the first in the nation to legislate emissions reduction targets, a task that our Prime Minister only just yesterday refused to do. He refused to legislate his targets, because he has none.

It is clear from our history that climate action is core Labor business, as I said, and we will continue to make sure that it is into the future. Even in opposition, as the government-in-waiting, South Australian Labor is poised with a plan that will continue to build on this legacy. Our hydrogen jobs plan will not only act on climate change but will create sustainable, clean jobs and clean economic opportunities for our state, as well as helping South Australians with electricity bills.

Despite the inaction and the ineptitude of the current national government, South Australians care about climate change; Australians care about climate change. As we continue to face extreme weather events and growing ecological disasters, we understand as well as anyone that there is no planet B: we have to get this right. Collectively, we are in a race against time, if we are to defy the predictions in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report that states that the world is on track for global warming of 1.5ºC or greater.

The international community must continue to work together, and of course Australia must do its part, not shirk its responsibilities, as our Prime Minister and the federal government continue to do. We need strong state and national leadership working together, and that does not come from the Liberal Party in this country. It is for these reasons that Labor wholeheartedly supports the motion, and it is for these reasons that we urge the chamber to do the same.

The Hon. C. BONAROS (21:42): On behalf of SA-Best, I rise to indicate our support for the Hon. Robert Simms' motion calling on the government to petition for a conference of parties to be hosted here in Adelaide, in addition to obviously the other matters outlined in the motion. If you did not know that the conference on climate change was due to begin this coming Sunday in Glasgow, then you really must be living under a rock. There has been much discussion in recent months over our own Prime Minister's attendance, let alone what policy will be delivered at that conference.

Even The Queen has weighed in on the climate change debate, and it is regrettable I must say that, due to health reasons, we now know that she will not be attending, but I do understand that she intends to deliver a video broadcast. As it turns out, and I suspect more as a result of the obvious public pressure, our Prime Minister will now join over 190 world leaders in attending the conference and working towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

A crowd of tens of thousands of people from across the globe, from ordinary citizens to business leaders and government representatives, will also descend on Glasgow in an effort to tackle this global emergency. As Sir David Attenborough noted last week, 'If we don't act now, it will be too late.'

I do not need to tell the Greens about the climate change basics. In fact, I do not think I need to tell anyone in here about climate change basics. We all know climate change has no borders. We all know average temperatures are rising, as is the sea level. We all know snow is melting across the globe and our oceans are warming. We all know the predictions are dire and that positive outcomes from Glasgow and, indeed, the next few conferences are absolutely critical.

To quote Sir David again, 'What humans do over the next 50 years will determine the fate of all life on the planet.' Of course, that includes the life of our kids, the custodians of our planet, the next generation, who will have to deal with the history that we have left them and how we move forward. We all acknowledge the importance of this event and the significance in terms of our participation in the conference.

In terms of hosting the conference here, we know that Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt was recently announced as the host of next year's conference. As the world's third most livable city, I agree wholeheartedly that Adelaide is well placed to be the first Australian city to host the conference, should Australia hold the rotational presidency at some stage in the not-too-distant future. The benefits of that I think will be enormous, and it is a very good goal that we should be aspiring to.

I do not need to repeat what everybody has already said. I think the Hon. Ian Hunter has summed up this debate well today. The Hon. Robert Simms has already done that previously. We certainly do not need to be questioning the need for our participation in this, but we do have an opportunity here. I think that this motion is a very worthy one and I support it on behalf of SA-Best.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (Minister for Human Services) (21:47): I rise to indicate support for this motion and to place on the record some comments on behalf of the Marshall Liberal government. I also note that the Minister for Environment and Water, the Hon. David Speirs, will be attending this climate change conference, as will our new Agent General in London, the Hon. David Ridgway, so South Australia will be very well represented indeed.

Our approach as the Marshall Liberal government has a clear path for responding to climate change by building a strong climate smart future. Our climate change leadership is characterised by an acknowledgement of the risks and challenges that climate change poses, a commitment to reduce our emissions to nation-leading ambitious target levels and a desire to adapt and pursue climate change related opportunities, including by engaging with businesses in the market.

In December 2019, this government released Directions for a Climate Smart South Australia, with the goal of net zero emissions by 2050. In the opening of the 2020 parliament, we then set an interim goal to reduce emissions by at least 50 per cent by 2030. In December 2020, we released the most powerful vision for climate action of any South Australian government in history, developed with input and advice from the renowned climate change expert, Professor Ross Garnaut. The Climate Change Action Plan 2021-2025 includes 68 actions across seven focus areas and shows that we could achieve a level of renewable energy that is more than five times the current local grid demand by 2050.

I will now, given the lateness of the hour, just touch on some of the recent climate change initiatives of our government. Under the category of clean energy transformation, South Australia is well on its way to achieving 100 per cent net renewable energy generation by the 2030s, with around 60 per cent of electricity generated coming from renewable sources in 2020.

This includes the Project EnergyConnect interconnector, which the Labor Party have vehemently resisted. South Australia is also well on its way to becoming a net electricity exporter to New South Wales and Victoria through a $2.3 billion interconnector which is being built. This will deliver cheaper, cleaner electricity and thousands of jobs, and I reiterate that this interconnector was opposed by Labor.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: Who's going to pay for that? Electricity customers.

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK: Secondly, clean green hydrogen—

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: Their prices will go up on your watch.

The PRESIDENT: Order! The honourable minister is on her feet and should be heard in silence.

The Hon. R.I. Lucas: Hear, hear!

The PRESIDENT: That applies to the Treasurer too.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK: Our Hydrogen Action Plan provides 20 actions across five key areas to help scale up hydrogen production for export and domestic consumption. The latest budget includes $37 million over four years for upgrade of the Port Bonython jetty to support hydrogen and ammonia exports. The proposed 50 megawatt Hydrogen Superhub would be the largest colocated wind, solar, battery and hydrogen production facility in the world, with the potential to produce about 25,000 kilograms of hydrogen a day, using 100 per cent renewable energy.

Thirdly, solar and battery expansion: our latest budget also commits an additional $10 million towards the Home Battery Scheme. Under the category of low emissions transport, in late 2020 we released our Electric Vehicle Action Plan, which included government investment in a statewide electric vehicle charging network. This includes $18.3 million over four years for electric vehicles charging infrastructure.

The government is also transitioning the public transport fleet to electric and hydrogen vehicles. In the 2021-22 budget this included 45 of the state's 70 diesel rail cars to be upgraded with hybrid energy storage and recovery systems. Seventeen new hybrid electric buses have been ordered, and we are also transitioning our annual fleet spend of $60 million to cleaner vehicles.

Under the category of adapting to climate change, this government realises that aspects of climate change are inevitable, and our climate change response therefore includes some mitigation actions. After decades of inaction by Labor we have committed nearly $50 million to undertake a mass sand replenishment from an external source at West Beach and the completion of a sand recycling pipeline from Semaphore as part of the Securing the Future of our Coastline project. This investment will have significant economic benefits including through more visitors to our beaches and an estimated 133 direct jobs during pipeline construction and sand replenishment.

There is $2 million towards Greener Neighbourhoods Grants, which provides funding for councils to improve the livability of our city through increased greenery, reduced urban heat and an improved natural environment.

Under the category of government leading by example, we have committed $60 million over two years for capital upgrades to government buildings to improve energy efficiency. This is the largest per capita stimulus investment of any Australian government in improving the energy efficiency of public buildings. With those remarks, I think we all look forward to positive outcomes from COP26 and some very strong actions coming out of that and commit to doing our part.

The Hon. R.A. SIMMS (21:53): In summing-up, I do want to thank the honourable members for their contributions. I thank the Hon. Ian Hunter and recognise his work as a former environment minister. I also thank the Hon. Connie Bonaros and the Hon. Michelle Lensink, Minister for Human Services. I recognise that all sides of politics have been committed to wanting to address the climate crisis here in South Australia.

Of course, from the Greens' perspective there is more that can be done. We have been advocating very strongly to move away from gas and other fossil fuels and will continue to do that. I also recognise the role of the Greens in this place in terms of pushing for investment in solar energy and the work of my predecessor as well in that regard.

The fact that South Australia has done so much good work in this space does put us in stark contrast with the federal government. In summing-up, I do have to recognise that when I put this motion forward it was before the federal government had announced their I-can't-believe-it's-not-a-policy policy of zero net emissions by 2050.

I pledge to cut out carbs and sugar by 2050. I will probably still be here in this chamber; you will be able to hold me to account for that promise. It shows how ludicrous it is to be making pledges 30 years into the never-never at a time of climate crisis when really what we need is leadership now. When asked to explain this new policy position, the Prime Minister said, and I quote from a column in News Limited:

We won't be lectured by others who do not understand Australia. The Australian Way is all about how you do it, and not if you do it. It's about getting it done.

I do not actually know what that means. A totally banal and meaningless statement from our Prime Minister that really sums up the Coalition government's position on climate change. They do not understand it, they do not want to do anything about it, most of them do not believe it, and it really is an appalling state of events to see the Prime Minister pedalling such a ridiculous policy at a federal level.

I do recognise the commitment of the Liberals in South Australia to supporting us hosting the COP. I think that would be a fantastic outcome. It is terrific to see all political parties supporting this and it would be a real opportunity I think to showcase South Australia's credentials as a leader on fighting the climate crisis, and also an opportunity to put even more pressure on the federal government to step up and to show the leadership that we know our planet desperately needs. With that, I put the motion.

Motion carried.

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