A few stings in the tail of the boring budget

Every Australian knows that, if you have two credits cards, it is very bad management to pay off your debt on one of them by racking it up on the other. Last night’s Budget pulled down the national economic debt, but it continued the process of racking up our ecological debt. Once again, the funds allocated to renewable energy, public transport and energy efficiency pale into insignificance next to the tens of billions to roads and the military.

Deadlock on climate action helps no-one

On December 2 last year, after being blind-sided by the unexpected elevation of Tony Abbott to the Liberal Party leadership, the Rudd government made a hasty announcement that they may well come to regret – that they would bring back their twice-defeated emissions trading bill a third time as soon as Parliament resumed in February.

Copenhagen raises the stakes – time for civil society to hold our leaders to account

So, at last world leaders have agreed on something. They have agreed, essentially, that they lack the will to really do what it takes to prevent climate crisis.

2+2=5? Copenhagen targets add up to 750 ppm

Here is the critical point to remember if a compromise agreement is somehow salvaged by the end of this week: the emission reduction commitments currently on the table add up to global atmospheric carbon concentrations of approximately 750 ppm . That means 4C average global temperature rise by the end of the century, agricultural wipeout, mass extinctions and almost certain runaway heating of the planet. If Copenhagen produces another political statement that claims to be aimed at limiting warming to 2C and carbon concentrations of 450 ppm, citizens around the world should be in no doubt that they are being lied to by their leaders.