As we move into the critical decade for climate action, the ambition of local governments across Australia towards significant emissions reduction in their communities make them the perfect partner to deliver a national net zero target well before 2050, suggests a new report from ICLEI and the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy.
The report, State of play: Local governments and city networks accelerating climate action in Australia, finds planned large scale emission reduction schemes across 60 Australian LGAs have the potential to eliminate 88 million tonnes of CO2e. This local effort is almost the same as the 92 million tonnes in emission reductions envisaged by the federal government to meet its 2030 goal.
The top five emissions reduction projects for Australian Councils were identified as:
- Facilitating the planning and construction of electric vehicle charging infrastructure by working with developers, owners of charging infrastructure and distribution businesses to remove the barrier of network availability.
- Deliver and facilitate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) across council and broader municipality, borrowing from models already successfully completed in most Australian states.
- Work with state government to ensure strict sustainability criteria is factored into planning processes accelerated by working regionally and through alliances or local government associations
- Work with waste management stakeholders to ensure organic waste diversion at municipal level
- Facilitate mode shift from private vehicles to alternative transport modes through installation of bike paths or public transit, incorporating education campaigns targeting key barriers to up take
ICLEI and the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy call on the Prime Minister to work with Mayors to design a national cities emission reduction program, and calls upon Environment and Energy Ministers to invest into the local government sector in the areas of emissions reduction and climate adaptation.
More information here