20 countries sign to phase out coal by 2020 - Australian emissions rise 3rd yr in a row

 As Australia's federal gov continues to cling to coal for dear life whilst trying to smother renewable energy, all the while pushing and pushing to build the largest coal mine in the southern hemisphere, a group of 20 countries have signed up to an agreement called the Powering Past Coal Alliance, promising to phase out all coal by 2030. Countries included in this are New Zealand, just across the Tasman from us. 

Twenty countries including Britain, Canada and New Zealand have joined an international alliance to phase out coal from power generation before 2030.

The Powering Past Coal Alliance was unveiled at the COP23 climate talks in Bonn, Germany, which were working out the technical details of the 2015 Paris Agreement.

 "I think we can safely say that the response has been overwhelming," Canadian Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said. "There is so much momentum, there is so much ambition in this room."

The alliance, which isn't legally binding, was launched days after a pro-coal presentation by the Trump administration jarred with many ministers who wanted the talks to focus on cleaner energy sources.

Australia isn't part of the alliance, which also doesn't include some of the world's biggest coal users China, India, the United States, Germany and Russia.

 Coal is responsible for more than 40 per cent of global emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. ABC

Predictably green house emissions under this gov have continued to rise. It's like they don't care and still don't believe in climate change. They've done everything they can to torpedo renewable energy at a federal level, beginning with the repeal of the carbon tax not long after the Abbott gov came to power. Now, for the third consecutive year, Australia's greenhouse emission have risen again. An obvious consequence of this gov's blind obsession with coal.

What’s happening with Australia’s carbon pollution? 

 A key way to track how Australia is going in terms of reducing pollution is to look at the Department of the Environment and Energy’s National Greenhouse Gas Inventor (to see if carbon pollution is increasing or decreasing). Unfortunately, the government has been hanging onto this data and has partially released a backlog of emissions data today. Turns out Australia’s emissions are still going up. 

• Emissions update: Australia’s carbon pollution continues to rise. Australia’s carbon pollution levels have increased for a third consecutive year, as confirmed by the the Department of the Environment and Energy today. The Quarterly Update for June 2017, released today shows a 0.7% rise in greenhouse gas pollution between July 2016 and June 2017. The update of the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory data again highlights Australia’s failure to cut greenhouse gas pollution. 

• Emissions projections: Projected emissions to 2030 have been revised down, taking into account a range of new assumptions such as lower electricity demand, falling technology costs, and lower demand for resources. Climate Council