❓ A WA parliamentary question probes the State Government's role in limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, referencing the Paris Agreement and WA's increasing CO2e emissions. The government asserts that climate policy is primarily a federal responsibility, with the state supporting national efforts.
AnsweredQoN 3809Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I
refer to the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial
levels articulated in Article 2, 1(a) of the Conference of Parties (COP) 21: United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference Paris Agreement, which enhances the UN Climate Summit Copenhagen
Convention, and I ask: (a) did the State Government have anyone in attendance at the COP 21: UN Climate Change Conference; (b) if no to (a), why not; (c) if yes to (a), whom and in what capacity; (d) what role does the State Government intend to take in limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels; (e) what are the commitments or objectives of the State Government in limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels; (f) if none to (d) or (e), why not; (g) if the Government believes that limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is a federal responsibility, why; (h) if the Government does believe that limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is a federal responsibility, what actions or protocols have been established with the Federal Government to reduce our Western Australia's carbon dioxide equivalency (CO2e) emissions; (i) if none to (h), why not; (j) given that Western Australia has doubled its CO2e emissions since the Kyoto Protocol international agreement on 11 December 1997, what action does the State Government intend to take to wind back its CO2e emissions; (k) in relation to (j), please outline the action and goals the State Government intends to take; and (l) in relation to (j), if the State Government does not intend to take action to wind back its CO2e emissions, why not?
refer to the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial
levels articulated in Article 2, 1(a) of the Conference of Parties (COP) 21: United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference Paris Agreement, which enhances the UN Climate Summit Copenhagen
Convention, and I ask: (a) did the State Government have anyone in attendance at the COP 21: UN Climate Change Conference; (b) if no to (a), why not; (c) if yes to (a), whom and in what capacity; (d) what role does the State Government intend to take in limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels; (e) what are the commitments or objectives of the State Government in limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels; (f) if none to (d) or (e), why not; (g) if the Government believes that limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is a federal responsibility, why; (h) if the Government does believe that limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is a federal responsibility, what actions or protocols have been established with the Federal Government to reduce our Western Australia's carbon dioxide equivalency (CO2e) emissions; (i) if none to (h), why not; (j) given that Western Australia has doubled its CO2e emissions since the Kyoto Protocol international agreement on 11 December 1997, what action does the State Government intend to take to wind back its CO2e emissions; (k) in relation to (j), please outline the action and goals the State Government intends to take; and (l) in relation to (j), if the State Government does not intend to take action to wind back its CO2e emissions, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
15 March 2016
Responded by
Leader of the House representing the Premier
Response time
28 days
(a) No
(b) The Conference of Parties is between nations that have signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Australian Government therefore is represented at the Conference of Parties.
(c) Not applicable
(d) - (e) The Australian Government has made international commitments and sets national targets and policy. The State Government is committed to playing its part to deliver and support national policy.
(f) Not applicable
(g) Limiting warming to 1.5 degrees is a shared international objective. The Australian Government will continue to set national policy to meet Australia’s national commitments. The design and implementation of policies for the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions is primarily a matter for the Australian Government and Federal Parliament as a national approach allows emission reductions to occur in the most economically efficient manner.
(h) The suite of national climate change mitigation policies applies to all States and Territories. There are no separate policy arrangements between the Commonwealth and Western Australia.
(i) There is no need to make separate bilateral arrangements to implement current national policies to mitigate carbon emissions in Western Australia.
(j) The State Government’s approach is described in the Government’s published climate change policy “Adapting to Our Changing Climate”.
(k) See response to (j).
(l) Not applicable
(b) The Conference of Parties is between nations that have signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Australian Government therefore is represented at the Conference of Parties.
(c) Not applicable
(d) - (e) The Australian Government has made international commitments and sets national targets and policy. The State Government is committed to playing its part to deliver and support national policy.
(f) Not applicable
(g) Limiting warming to 1.5 degrees is a shared international objective. The Australian Government will continue to set national policy to meet Australia’s national commitments. The design and implementation of policies for the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions is primarily a matter for the Australian Government and Federal Parliament as a national approach allows emission reductions to occur in the most economically efficient manner.
(h) The suite of national climate change mitigation policies applies to all States and Territories. There are no separate policy arrangements between the Commonwealth and Western Australia.
(i) There is no need to make separate bilateral arrangements to implement current national policies to mitigate carbon emissions in Western Australia.
(j) The State Government’s approach is described in the Government’s published climate change policy “Adapting to Our Changing Climate”.
(k) See response to (j).
(l) Not applicable
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.