Comments for Climate Tasmania http://climatetasmania.com.au Global climate change from a Tasmanian perspective Tue, 22 May 2012 17:09:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 Comment on Carbon pricing: a poor excuse for doing nothing? by Phil Harrington http://climatetasmania.com.au/2012/04/17/a239/comment-page-1/#comment-99245 Phil Harrington Tue, 17 Apr 2012 11:51:29 +0000 http://climatetasmania.com.au/?p=6679#comment-99245 It's hard to know where this will end. Since you penned this article, Peter, we've seen a concerted attack on the national renewable energy target - about the only piece of bipartisan climate policy in Australia (introduced in 2001 by John Howard, many would like to forget) - the attack led by a combined and heavyweight business lobby. Now Victoria is talking about abandoning it's six star target for new housing - both positions justified by the view that "we have a carbon price now, so we don't need anything else". What kind of logic says that as we price carbon in order to try and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we no longer need energy efficient housing or renewable energy? Does anyone on this planet believe that by increasing householders power bills - as if they weren't increasing fast enough already - builders will automatically build 6 star houses without the need for regulation? Do the builders pay the power bills? No, it's the householders that do that. The builder's interest is to minimise their costs and maximise their profits. And as ABC Radio's Background Briefing program 2 weeks ago so capably demonstrated, most 'building professionals' don't even understand how the star rating system in Australia works, let alone would they volunteer high-rated houses for the general market. A small number of committed architects and builders do this, of course, and a few well-heeled house buyers buy them - but that is irrelevant for the mass market and the resulting national emissions of greenhouse gases. If we retreat from carefully justified and excellent regulatory settings like 6 star houses - which Tasmania's excuse for a government has already walked away from, by the way - policies that save households literally thousands of dollars, quite apart from addresssing climate change - what hope is there for us? Does anyone believe a new 'tax' - the carbon pricing scheme - is an adequate substitute for better housing and renewable energy? I cling to the slender hope that at some point reason, science, logic and enlightened self-interest must prevail over spin, dogma and ideology...but will that be soon enough? What odds am I offered? It’s hard to know where this will end. Since you penned this article, Peter, we’ve seen a concerted attack on the national renewable energy target - about the only piece of bipartisan climate policy in Australia (introduced in 2001 by John Howard, many would like to forget) - the attack led by a combined and heavyweight business lobby. Now Victoria is talking about abandoning it’s six star target for new housing - both positions justified by the view that “we have a carbon price now, so we don’t need anything else”. What kind of logic says that as we price carbon in order to try and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we no longer need energy efficient housing or renewable energy? Does anyone on this planet believe that by increasing householders power bills - as if they weren’t increasing fast enough already - builders will automatically build 6 star houses without the need for regulation? Do the builders pay the power bills? No, it’s the householders that do that. The builder’s interest is to minimise their costs and maximise their profits. And as ABC Radio’s Background Briefing program 2 weeks ago so capably demonstrated, most ‘building professionals’ don’t even understand how the star rating system in Australia works, let alone would they volunteer high-rated houses for the general market. A small number of committed architects and builders do this, of course, and a few well-heeled house buyers buy them - but that is irrelevant for the mass market and the resulting national emissions of greenhouse gases. If we retreat from carefully justified and excellent regulatory settings like 6 star houses - which Tasmania’s excuse for a government has already walked away from, by the way - policies that save households literally thousands of dollars, quite apart from addresssing climate change - what hope is there for us? Does anyone believe a new ‘tax’ - the carbon pricing scheme - is an adequate substitute for better housing and renewable energy?

I cling to the slender hope that at some point reason, science, logic and enlightened self-interest must prevail over spin, dogma and ideology…but will that be soon enough? What odds am I offered?

]]> Comment on The state of our climate by Peter Boyer http://climatetasmania.com.au/2012/03/20/a235/comment-page-1/#comment-86619 Peter Boyer Sun, 25 Mar 2012 17:55:26 +0000 http://climatetasmania.com.au/?p=6572#comment-86619 Geoff - I "believe" in them only insofar as I believe that CSIRO and Met Bureau are far better placed than you or I to make such statements, and have more to go on than either of us would have. I thought the temperature information in their report, especially the ocean heat content, was pretty good reason to take them seriously. We're pretty foolish to ignore them. I won't take you up on the bet, though it's tempting. That projection is based on business as usual, which looks pretty unlikely to me, in which case a good old economic depression might save our bacon. Anyway I'm too old for 20-year bets. Geoff - I “believe” in them only insofar as I believe that CSIRO and Met Bureau are far better placed than you or I to make such statements, and have more to go on than either of us would have. I thought the temperature information in their report, especially the ocean heat content, was pretty good reason to take them seriously. We’re pretty foolish to ignore them. I won’t take you up on the bet, though it’s tempting. That projection is based on business as usual, which looks pretty unlikely to me, in which case a good old economic depression might save our bacon. Anyway I’m too old for 20-year bets.

]]> Comment on The state of our climate by Geoff Cruickshank http://climatetasmania.com.au/2012/03/20/a235/comment-page-1/#comment-86459 Geoff Cruickshank Sun, 25 Mar 2012 08:00:33 +0000 http://climatetasmania.com.au/?p=6572#comment-86459 Peter, how strongly do you believe in these projections? I'm prepared to make a small wager on that 1.5 degrees in 20 years, if you're interested. Peter, how strongly do you believe in these projections?
I’m prepared to make a small wager on that 1.5 degrees in 20 years, if you’re interested.

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