Climate change: Religious leaders pen letter to Government pushing ambitious post-2020 emissions cuts

Updated

Australia's most senior Anglican Church official believes politicians may have "misread" the mood for strong action to tackle climate change.

Anglican Primate Philip Freier is among several religious leaders who have penned a letter to the Government and Opposition urging them to adopt ambitious post-2020 emissions cuts.

"We are pleased to see the Government acknowledges the importance of Australia contributing to a strong and effective global agreement in Paris," the letter to the Government read.

"However this needs to be matched by robust policies."

The religious leaders suggest an emissions cut of 40 per cent from 1990 levels by 2025 and 80 per cent by 2030.

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"That coal and natural gas make up so much of our exports, that 95 per cent of our energy consumption comes from fossil fuel sources when the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) average is 81 per cent, should spur us on to more rapidly decarbonise our economy," the letter read.

The 40 per cent cut is more aggressive than the Climate Change Authority's ambitious recommendation of 30 per cent by 2025.

The issue of carbon emission reduction and climate change is one that transcends those differences and affects all of humanity. Anglican Primate Philip Freier

The Government is working out what level of emissions reduction to commit to beyond the end of the decade, ahead of a major United Nations conference in December.

It has said that it will take a "serious and credible" proposal to the Paris talks at the end of the year.

Archbishop Freier said the letter, co-signed by Catholics, Hindus, Buddhists and Rabbis, was important to show climate change was an issue bigger than differences in religion.

"Now plainly religion is a fairly big dividing issue for many people in the world, but we think the issue of carbon emission reduction and climate change is one that transcends those differences and affects all of humanity," he told the ABC.

"I think that [our political leaders] might be misreading the interest that Australians have in seeing we do something that is effective and inter-generationally productive."

Full list of signatories: Professor Nihal Agar: Chairman of Hindu Council of Australia

Venerable Ajahn Brahm: Spiritual director at Australian Sangha Association, Buddhist Society of Western Australia

Rev Professor Andrew Dutney: President of Uniting Church of Australia National Assembly

Ms Jacqui Remond: Director of Catholic Earthcare Australia

Rabbi Jeffrey Kamins: Senior Rabbi at Emanuel Synagogue

Rabbi Jonathan Keren-Black: Environmental Advisor at Council of Progressive Rabbis

Mr Kim Hollow: President of Federation of Australian Buddhist Councils

The religious leaders also sent a letter to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, urging Labor to adopt robust commitments at the Labor Party's National Conference this year.

The letter was organised by Thea Ormerod from the Australian Religious Response to Climate Change.

"It's not that difficult to pull [all the religious leaders] together," she said.

"It's no longer morally neutral to be burning fossil fuels. It is quite destructive and the atmosphere can only take so much more of it.

"No-one knows — including climate scientists — how much more [the atmosphere] can take.

"It's a responsibility for everyone."

The Catholic Church is also taking the threat of climate change seriously.

Later this year, Pope Francis will release an encyclical on ecology, addressing climate change, other abuses of the environment, and their impact on the poor.

The release of the encyclical — a letter to all the bishops of the church — is intended to influence international negotiations on emissions reductions being held at the end of the year in Paris.

The release will also occur before the Pope delivers an address to world leaders at the United Nations in September that will emphasise the urgent need for agreement and action.

Topics: religion-and-beliefs, christianity, community-and-society, government-and-politics, federal-government, environment, environmental-impact, environmental-policy, australia, france, holy-see-vatican-city-state

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