The latest IPCC report makes it clear no new fossil fuel projects can be opened. That includes us, Australia

(The Guardian, 20 Mar 2023) Our climate change minister is still at odds with both his stance at Cop27 talks and nearly 200 other countries.

There is a simple line in the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that quickly cuts through the Australian debate over the future of coal and gas.

It is based on physics and maths, and has been agreed by representatives from most of the world’s governments, who spent the past week in Switzerland thrashing out the wording of a synthesis document that brings together everything established on the subject over the past eight years.

It is this: greenhouse gas emissions from existing fossil fuel infrastructure is more than enough to push the world beyond 1.5C of global heating compared with pre-industrial times. Obviously enough, it tells us that no more fossil fuel sources can be opened if the world is serious about living up to its commitments and avoiding a significantly worsening climate crisis.

This is not a fringe position. It is a mainstream, globally agreed fact that is supported by nearly 200 countries, including Australia. But it is clearly at odds with the claims by the climate change minister, Chris Bowen, among others, that it would be “irresponsible to start placing bans on traditional energy supply like coal and gas”.

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The Guardian, 20 Mar 2023: The latest IPCC report makes it clear no new fossil fuel projects can be opened. That includes us, Australia