I watched the climate change debate today between the Minister for Climate Change Senator Penny Wong and the Opposition climate spokesperson Greg Hunt and I must admit I wasn’t filled with confidence.
Both the Federal Labor party and the Coalition continue to argue over who has the best climate policy, even though both party’s policies are completely inadequate.
The concept of protecting forests as part of Australia’s climate change mitigation plan wasn’t even mentioned in the debate.
This is a missed opportunity because Australia could increase our emission reduction targets if we took immediate and cheap measures to protect and restore Australia’s forests and woodlands.
Instead, the Labor party continue to focus on the CPRS instead of getting on with the job by proposing immediate complementary measures like investing in renewable energy and forest protection.
The Coalition have released a plan that focuses on planting trees in urban areas instead of protecting the massive EXISTING carbon stores that are being cleared, logged or degraded across the continent every day.
Please help us educate our leaders by contacting your local politician and ask them to make sure their party’s climate policy includes protecting and restoring our forests and woodlands.
If you want to find the contact details for your local members of parliaments check out www.wilderness.org.au/haveyourvoiceheard
Remember, It’s simple, if we protect nature, nature will help protect our climate!
Jo said,
February 10, 2010 @ 7:36 am
Penny Wong is building the illusion that federal government cares about climate change. Why then does the emissions trading scheme have such a wimpy target? Why are the heavy polluters rewarded for polluting the atmosphere with carbon dioxide? This scheme will cost the taxpayer and not achieve a worthwhile gain. With the agriculture industry also exempt, the balance is skewed even further. Yet agriculture produces 50% of Australia’s emissions.
This scheme is not intelligent, it is not going to achieve the stated goals, and it is going to add to the nation’s debt and the people’s pain.