The Greens would condemn Australia to failure over last year’s much-vaunted post-election 43 per cent emissions reduction law if the minority party sinks Labor’s cornerstone safeguard mechanism reforms in the Senate, said Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen.

As pressure from a leading conservation group, businesses and voters grows on the crossbench to pass the heavy emissions trading scheme into law, Mr Bowen warned that unless parliament passes the reforms, emissions will fall by only 35 per cent.