Australia’s emissions are up but it is not from coal and gas

Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions are up ... but it’s not from coal and gas. Here’s what’s behind the rise.

The end of lockdowns, closed borders and the drought has driven up Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, even though carbon from electricity has dropped significantly, ­according to a new report.

Agriculture and transport have driven the increase in emissions, the new data reveals, meaning cows, cars and planes are behind a sizeable part of the rise.

While the emissions had been down in recent years, ­Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen had a crack at the former government for the ­results, saying “a global recession, pandemic, and drought are not economically desirable, nor sustainable ways to reduce national emissions”.

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen. Picture: AAP Image/Steven Saphore

Opposition climate change spokesman Ted O’Brien said while overall emissions grew slightly, it was in the context of strong economic growth and lower emissions than at any stage under the previous Labor government.

Emissions from coal dropped 4.4 per cent, while gas dropped 23 per cent, as more renewable energy came on to the market.

But petrol consumption rose slightly as people got back on the road after Covid lockdowns, and jet fuel use skyrocketed 23.6 per cent in the year to December 2021, according to the Quarterly Update of Australia’s National Greenhouse Gas Inventory.

While agricultural emissions have dropped 15 per cent since 1990, in line with the drop in cattle and sheep populations, it rose again by 4.2 per cent in the past year as livestock populations rose again after the drought.

AgForce boss Mike Guerin said working collaboratively with farmers with an incentive-based scheme to reduce emissions would be more effective than a “punitive tax on animals” as New Zealand recently announced.

“On a net emissions basis, agriculture is the only industry to lower emissions tangibly since 1995,” Mr Guerin said.

AgForce CEO Mike Guerin. Picture: News Regional Media

“A positive, incentive-based collaboration with community, government and the scientific community is the best way to drive agricultural emissions down,” he said.

Mr Bowen said that emissions had risen 0.8 per cent, or 4.1 million tonnes, between December 2020 and December 2021.

Originally published as Australia’s emissions are up but it is not from coal and gas