Media and political attacks on Australia’s emissions targets ‘straight out of the climate obstruction playbook’, expert says | Australia news

Political and media attacks on renewable energies and climate action in Australia in recent months have come out of “the climate obstruction game” which has been perfected for decades around the world by fossil interests.

Professor Christian Downie, Australian researcher, says that he has studied the techniques used by groups of companies and lobbyists from around the world who are now seen in Australia.

Renewable energies and policies to reach zero -clear emissions underwent a sustained attack in certain districts, the Albanian government, considered its climatic target in 2035 and that the coalition was subjected to internal pressure to lower zero net targets.

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Downie, an expert in coordinated efforts to undermine warnings from the risk of climate change and slow down the global transition of fossil fuels, underlined the business coucil of Australia, which has published a largely reported modeling while the Albanian government prepared to set its 2035 climate objective, warning an ambitious target would require $ 530 billion.

Australian scientists who have prepared the country’s first national climatic risk assessment were accused of alarmist on the first pages of two newspapers of News Corp by a scholarship holder in a reflection group based in the United States with a story of criticizing climate science.

“What we have seen in recent months is very consistent with the empirical evidence that we have gathered around the world on how groups are hindering climate action,” said Downie.

“It’s straight out of the climate obstruction game book.”

Downie, from the Australian National University of the National University and Governance School, is part of the social climate Science Network – a group of around 800 researchers looking for politicized conflicts during the climate crisis.

The group is looking for the “network of complex actors” which includes thinktanks, false basic groups, professional associations, public relations companies and fossil fuel companies that have worked for decades to slow down climate action in the world.

Downie is also a co-publisher of a network book which will be published this month by Oxford University Press entitled Climate Obstruction: a global assessment which “sums up the current state of knowledge on which hinders action on climate change and how”.

With the colleague, Professor Robert Brulle, of Brown University of Rhode Island, Downie discovered that professional associations working on climate in the United States had spent $ 3.4 billion in a decade in political activities, including lobbying, public relations campaigns and political donations.

The pair has examined the tax declarations of American associations – Work Downie says Downie cannot be done in Australia.

“Here we have much poorer transparency policies. But we have examples from where professional associations do the same,” he said.

The BCA report was considered a warning to avoid ambitious targets and was strongly criticized by the exploitation of the strong company of the billionaire of the billionaire Andrew Forrest, Climate Advocates and The Greens.

“It was straight out of the game book,” said Downie. “We know that in the veterans of fossil fuel, have exploited expert studies to make complaints on climate action. They deduce potential costs [of action] While ignoring the advantages, and that’s what happened with BCA modeling.

“Professional associations have played a role for many years, allowing businesses to hide in the crowd. These associations can do the dirty work for societies and lead their political campaigns which could otherwise make damage to the brand. ”

Downie appeared last week during an investigation by the Senate, called by the Greens, in the climate and disinformation and disinformation of energy.

This survey received nearly 200 submissions with several groups, including the Climate Council, WWF-Australia and climate action against disinformation, indicating a long list of claims recently promoted by conservative politicians, thoughts and conservative media.

These statements understood that renewable energies were expensive and unreliable, offshore wind fats killed whales, zero net policies would damage prosperity and global heating did not threaten the great reef barrier.

Dr. John Cook, a climate disinformation expert at Melbourne University, also testified to the investigation.

“The two major trends in climate disinformation are a transition from scientific denial to the sap of climatic solutions, and a strong emphasis on discrediting climate science by attacking climatologists,” he said.

“The latest efforts in Australia correspond closely to what we see on a global scale, by attacking solutions and scientists to try to delay climate action.”

Cook said that public awareness of “deceptive tips used to delay climate action” was a “crucial part to counter their negative influence”.

Downie and others have told the survey that groups involved in political activities should be forced to reveal sources of financing and the quantity spent.

Downie thinks that more Australians must understand the role of coordinated campaigns.

“The reason we have so often failed to have ambitious climatic policies? There are many reasons, but the intentional efforts of coal and gas and their catalysts is the reason why we have this history in Australia of the inaction of climate policy. ”

A spokesperson for the BCA said that the Council was determined to “make a net zero affordably and reliably by 2050 and supports the framework of ambitious objectives but – especially – achievable 2035”.

The press release indicates that modeling has been developed “with an upward analysis and adopts an investment approach based on current costs and technologies. It focuses on policy changes and the investment required to decarbonize our economy. ”

They said that the conclusions drawn was in accordance with the modeling carried out by the CSIRO and the Treasury.