AROUND 200 people attended the climate day of action at Town Green in Port Macquarie on Sunday, one of a hundred across the nation.
The Hastings branch of Climate Change Australia (CCA) organised the event as part of the group’s Safe Climate – Sensible Policies campaign in support of retaining the clean energy legislation currently up for repeal by the Abbott Government.
President Harry Creamer said he believed this was one of the largest rallies ever held in Port Macquarie, if not the largest.
In addition to himself, speakers included World War II veteran and writer Charles Granquist, who lives in Port Macquarie and has just had a book published in which a family battles climate change in 2020.
Mr Creamer called for effective and rational policy-making that would guarantee emissions fell by more than five per cent by 2020.
“We need targets to limit global warming to two degrees Celcius at most,” he said.
“We call on the government to set annual caps on Australia’s carbon pollution and keep a price on carbon as the most cost-effective way to transition to a low-carbon economy and society, and avoid the escalating costs of climate impacts.
“We must continue the progress we are making, not weaken our efforts. CCA supports any party that will act seriously and effectively on climate change and renewable energy.”
Mr Creamer said the clean energy package of the Gillard/Rudd governments had been working.
“There has been a 7.7 per cent fall in Australia’s emissions, and an eight per cent fall in coal-fired generation, due in part to the price on carbon,” he said.
“There has been a 30 per cent rise in clean energy, and in 2012, 32 new renewable energy power stations were accredited, bringing the total to 370 across Australia.
“If the government really does want cheap electricity for all, it should get right behind clean renewable energy where the fuel cost is zero and the supply infinite.”
Mr Creamer said there were now nine Bills before Parliament designed to abolish carbon pricing, scrap the Climate Change Authority and axe the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, which was making a seven per cent profit by investing in renewable energy.
“Repeal of the existing laws is not a priority for the majority of Australians. Sixty two per cent of people want the government to do more to tackle climate change,” he said.
“The clean energy reforms are regarded as model legislation around the world. Australia will become the first nation on earth to downgrade its climate and clean energy policies in this way.”
Mr Creamer said people needed to understand the link between global warming and extreme weather, such as super typhoon Haiyan that caused devastation and death in the Philippines.
He said it was inevitable that climate and sustainability impacts would become worse, and such a short-sighted approach placed all Australians on the wrong side of history.
