Australia has to toughen emission targets to pull its weight

TOUGHER targets on reducing carbon emissions will be needed if Australia is to have any impact on climate change.

APN NewsdeskTOUGHER targets on reducing carbon emissions will be needed if Australia is to have any impact on climate change.

A draft report from the Climate Change Authority released on Wednesday said the current target of a 5% fall in emissions by 2020 was "inadequate on a number of grounds".

Authority chairman Bernie Fraser wrote the government's targets for moving beyond 5% were already met and a "very rapid" reduction post-2020 would be essential in limiting global temperature rises to no more than 2C.

"Evidence is also mounting that several other countries Australia is often compared with are gearing up to reduce their emissions more aggressively by 2020," Mr Fraser wrote.

"A 5% target would leave Australia lagging behind others, including the United States."

While the Authority did not recommend a specific new target, the report said a 15% or 25% fall were two of the valid options if Australia was to contribute to reducing global carbon emissions after 2020.

Originally published as Australia has to toughen emission targets to pull its weight