Climate in the Pub: RECENT MEETINGS

Our May Climate In the Pub saw a lively presentation from Sara Stace (President of Better Streets) and Tim Sullivan (Transport Planner and thought leader).

The presentation theme was on our culture of 'motor normativity' a concept describing how we have normalised the impact of the car in our lives. It's often characterised by underestimating the risks associated with driving, justifying illegal driving behaviours, and being deeply embedded and subconscious. This bias leads to planning decisions that prioritise car-dependent infrastructure, even if it makes other modes of transportation less accessible. Apart from accidents, injuries and death, ever-present exhaust fumes damage health, and of course add dramatically to greenhouse gas emissions (after energy, transport is the second largest contributor to our emissions).

Sydney is still dominated by the cult of the car- and governments and transport bureaucracies have perpetuated our reliance on petrol based cars. The West Connex project for instance has been a $30bn disaster.

Currently we spend less than 90c pp on active transport this needs to go to $15 to at least meet UN recommendations.

CCBR member Will Atkins then spoke briefly about the campaign to re-open Glebe Island Bridge for walkers and cyclists - a campaign being pursued by State MP Kobi Shetty (as well as CCBR!)

We need to roll out solar, wind, batteries and transmissions more widely across NSW - but how can we do this sensitively, respecting nature and the communities that are closest? 

Eve Altman, Clean Energy Campaigner for the Nature Conservation Council of NSW, has been talking with those on the frontlines about how to do it right. 

De Newton is a campaigner for clean air and water on the NSW Central Coast, the location of  Vales Point & Eraring coal-fired power stations. She explained that NSW coal-fired power stations produce 50 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year. Vales Point alone emits over double NSW’s  officially permitted limit of Nitrogen Dioxide - which is in turn several times more than European limits.

But another problem is the Eraring ash dam, which currently holds 30 million tonnes of coal ash – the end-product of burning coal. Coal ash contains significant levels of arsenic, mercury, lead, and many other heavy metals, harmful to human health. If stored dry, it is liable to enter the atmosphere: if wet, it will enter groundwater.

De quoted alarming health figures. 1142 children presented  to Gosford and Wyong  hospitals with life-threatening asthma, while Cancer Council figures show that Budgewoi has approximately double the incidence of a range of cancers compared with Balmain. Recommendations coming out of a number of inquiries have resulted in no action.

More information on De Newton’s Powerpoint slides.

Future Sooner will hold a Citizens Inquiry on Sunday 25 August, 1pm-5pm, Halekulani Bowling Club, Budgewoi.

When journalist Stephen Long spoke to Climate in the Pub on Wednesday 8 May, his topic could not have been more prescient. He spoke of how the gas industry was conning the nation – and the very next day PM and local CCBR member Anthony Albanese backed in a major expansion of gas production to 2050 and beyond.

Stephen, who is a Fellow with The Australia Institute (TAI), asked if Australia was actually a "petrostate". A map of Australia showed that almost one third of our land mass is covered by petroleum exploration licenses - including nearly all of the Northern Territory, most of South Australia, and extensive offshore areas of WA. But unlike efficient "petrostates" such as Qatar or Norway, Australia allows much of the profits from our gas and oil industries to go offshore untaxed, or taxed at a very low rate.

He pointed to connections between Labor and the fossil fuel industry. For example, Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson approved many LNG export projects, then joined the industry.  Australian gas giant Santos has family connections in the SA government. (Santos is moving into NSW with its plans for the Narrabri Gas project and the Queensland-Hunter Gas Pipeline). In WA, Woodside's  planned Burrup Hub expansion would be the largest fossil fuel development in the southern hemisphere – yet Federal Resources Minister Madeleine ("Mad") King seems to disproportionately influence cabinet decisions in favour of fossil fuel companies and against environmental considerations.

At least 40 CCBR supporters at the Merton concluded the meeting by passing a resolution to send to Premier Chris Minns. We recognise - even if Federal Labor does not - that apparent "shortages of gas" would be better solved by a gas reservation policy and reduction of demand.

Noting that NSW is not on track to meet its legislated GHG reduction targets for 2030 and 2035, this meeting calls on the NSW Government to fast-track the promised Gas Roadmap, with clear gas demand reduction targets out to 2035, helping NSW get back onto a safe climate path. 

32 people were at February’s Climate in the pub meeting. CCBR committee member Ruth Ferrington started the meeting by sharing good news stories:

• The Federal government announced new fuel efficiency standards and plans for easing the transition to electric vehicles

•  In NSW, the Russell Vale Colliery has closed

• ·Locally, the NSW Upper House will hold an inquiry into the failures of the Rozelle Interchange. It will be chaired by Greens MLA Cate Faehrmann.

Then Market Forces shareholder action campaigner Vishad Sharma gave us a detailed account of the various arms of the organisation's campaign to dissuade financial institutions from investing in fossil fuel companies.

The big four banks each have billions of dollars invested in fossil fuels, with ANZ being the worst with $18.6bn invested in fossil fuels since the Paris accord of 2015. A page on Market Forces’ website shows fossil fuel involvement of every bank in Australia, and steps you can take to object.

Super funds came under the spotlight next, with the question “What Future is Your Super Funding?” MF’s website also has a chart showing many Super funds and the extent to which they were exposed to the “Climate Wreckers’ Index” of 190 companies with the biggest plans to expand the fossil fuel industry. Across the board, super funds in Australia had on average 9.3% of investors’ funds in fossil fuels – a total of $140bn. “If your fund isn’t listed, it’s probably good” Vishad said, encouraging people to check, but noting that MF was not providing financial advice.

Another strategy used by Market Forces is to encourage supporters to become shareholders in the large companies and support resolutions at AGMs. It needs 100 shareholders to put up a motion, but shareholders each only need a small shareholding to qualify. Support for such resolutions has grown: typically, from 4% to 10% in a year, and 20% in the case of Santos’ Remuneration report last year. If this were repeated, it would trigger a spill motion, dismissing the entire Board on the grounds that they were failing in their responsibilities.

As a takeaway, Vishad recommended that everyone in the audience should look at their funds, both in banks and in superannuation, and take follow-up action as recommended in the talk and on Market Forces’ website.

The guest speaker was Chris Briggs, a Research Director at the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures. Chris has over 20 years experience as a political adviser, policy maker, program leader and researcher at both State and Federal levels. He spoke about the planning process for transitioning away from coal. There are, he said, two key challenges: managing an orderly exit from coal, and the rapid set-up of renewable energy sources.

Progress has been better than you might think: 35% of our energy usage is already coming from renewables. But we now only have 5 to 10 years to achieve what was expected to take 15-20. In fact, he said, it’s quite overwhelming to consider how far behind we are. To get from here to a successful transition will require: 10,000 kilometres of transition lines; maintaining our current record pace of 1 new wind farm per month; and 60 million solar panels, all by 2030. At the same time, we can expect to double our electricity consumption by 2030. This will be the result of phasing out both gas and petrol.

However, we have cause for optimism. One scenario is that we could become a hydrogen super-power, in which case we could be using 100% renewables by 2024 – 2025. Our natural resources are good, and in fact we are the only country that can produce every element needed for the battery supply chain. There is already a strong willingness among energy suppliers to progressively shut down their coal generators, but without a coherent plan some of them are hanging back.

Of course, the other problem is that even now only 25% of the coal we mine is used in Australia. The other 75% is sold overseas, and we have no control over how that is used.

Chris described a “just transition” to renewables, in which our coal communities would be looked after and provided with alternative jobs, maybe even with equity in our new industries. Environmental quality should be maintained, and all social dialogue around transition should be inclusive. Although surveys have shown that current coal workers are sceptical about having access to new jobs, there should in fact be more jobs in renewable energy than there are in coal. First Nations people should also have opportunities, both as labour and in running their own renewable projects on their own land.

The Nature Conservation Council has identified the  top 10 goals for the 2023 election: targets for reducing emissions, adopting renewable energy and storage,  moving beyond coal and gas,  and more. Just what must we do, for instance, to electrify our transport, transition rural communities, protect our natural carbon sinks? 

 Climate Change Balmain-Rozelle has helped develop these policy asks. We will be working  in concert with community action groups across the state to push our major parties on ambition in dealing with the climate crisis.

Dr. Brad Smith from NCC presented this policy platform in preparation for the NSW State election coming up next March.

Kate Minter surveyed the opportunities and benefits for all of us: installing a heat pump for hot water and for room heating (as well as cooling): replacing a gas stovetop with an electric induction stovetop; and switching to an electric car, all make for more efficient use of electricity, maximising the benefits of rooftop solar or other sources of clean electricity. Also, the local economy benefits from jobs (eg installation).

Will Reece has recently converted his house to all-electric as part of a renovation. He explained the planning and work involved in installing a heat pump for hot water, reverse cycle air conditioning and an induction cooktop, as well as rooftop solar panels.  He also mentioned a couple of small things he might have done differently, and a couple of unexpected benefits.

What is it to be 'un Australian', what are our 'Australian values', and what are 'vested interests'? 

Thanks to Sue Butler for wittily shedding light on these and other elements of political spin- as politics in Australia goes from truth to truthiness. in an insightful talk at this months CitP.  Sue spoke very sharply on the language of political spin - and its evolution in political Australia. 

Ideas, slogans, utterances, have two sides: denotation - the literal meaning; and connotation - the values attached to the utterance. Half a century ago, Gough Whitlam said "It's time". A sentence that had a literal meaning, but also created a feeling. 

Since then, right around the world, political slogans have become more and more focussed on image and feeling, and less on the actual denoted facts (if any).  Our politicians are retailed to the market as celebrities rather than as possible leaders. 

Enter Scotty from Marketing, and the idea that truthiness, the appeal to the public of what you say, is more important than truth. Sue Butler tracked expressions like "Aussie Battler" from its literal WW1 meaning though to John Howard's usage to include anyone who wanted to better themselves, and Scott Morrison's "if you have a go, you'll get a go". She noted that Scomo himself was unable to explain what that actually meant. Similarly phrases like "How good is that?" referring to anything or anyone from "Aunty Violet and her Welcome to Country" to "Mining", seem to have no literal meaning, but cumulatively build an "image" of the politician (in this case Scomo) who repeats them regularly.
As a dictionary editor, Sue suggested it was generally difficult to control changes in language or meaning, though The Guardian had revised its style guide to use words like Climate Emergency instead of Climate Change to communicate a greater sense of urgency about the topic.