Jetsetting Hunters Hill councillor Justine McLaughlin declares ‘climate emergency’
A north shore councillor who is known for enjoying frequent holidays overseas has successfully moved a motion to declare a “climate emergency”.
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A jetsetting local councillor who is known for leading an opulent lifestyle on Sydney’s lower north shore has successfully moved a motion to declare a “climate emergency”.
Justine McLaughlin, an independent councillor for Hunters Hill, took some colleagues by surprise when she put forward a sweeping motion on Monday night which said that “human-induced climate change represents one of the greatest threats to humanity”.
It comes about four weeks after she returned from a skiing holiday with her family in Whistler, Canada.
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Cr McLaughlin also took multiple overseas trips last year including visiting New York and Chicago in June and a holiday to Europe in January where she travelled to Switzerland, France and Italy.
Air travel is a huge contributor to climate change as flights produce greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) from burning jet fuel.
“Declaring the climate is changing means nothing and it does nothing … declaring an emergency makes it our priority in everything we do,” Cr McLaughlin said at the council meeting.
“We do declare a climate emergency because this summer has been a watershed moment for our country and for our residents.”
“I’m very passionate about this.”
She pointed to a string of other NSW councils that have already declared climate emergencies – including Bega, Lismore and Ballina – and said the motion was deliberately broad to give council options moving forward.
Clover Moore’s City of Sydney has also formally declared a climate emergency.
But the motion was met with opposition from some Liberal councillors, including Ben Collins who said he was concerned it was merely “virtue signalling and not doing anything effective”.
“(Climate change) is too important to pay lip service … we can’t just declare something, we’ve got to do something,” he said.
Cr Collins proposed an amendment which included a commitment to zero net emissions by 2050 – in line with Paris targets – and cancelling interstate travel for council conferences, but it was defeated.
When The Daily Telegraph approached Cr McLaughlin with a detailed list of questions – including how the climate emergency aligns with her lifestyle – she initially said she was preparing a statement but then declined to comment.
A round trip from Sydney to Vancouver International Airport, near Whistler, generates 1,585.4kg of CO2 per passenger, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Cr McLaughlin has also posted photos on various social media accounts showing her enjoying eating truffle and chocolate fondue in Switzerland, skiing in France and visiting the Art Institute of Chicago.
Commercial aviation is responsible for about two per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions, according to the International Air Transport Association.
But that figure could more than double by 2050, according to Manchester Metropolitan University researchers, or even triple if planes do not become more fuel efficient.