Newsletter item – Local Government Association Tasmania, 9 February 2022

Climate Change

Climate change is a major priority for councils and their communities, reflecting the serious impacts that are happening already and are forecast to worsen. Today, natural disasters annually cost on average the Australian economy $38 billion. This is projected to rise to $73 billion per year by 2060[1], even under a low emissions scenario. For Tasmania, the average annual economic costs from natural disasters are estimated to increase to $630 million by 2060 – a significant impact to be borne by communities and governments.

Regional and local action

In the north, councils have been working together to understand and respond to challenges facing councils in the region.  Building on this work, the councils are currently scoping a regional climate change action planning program.

In the south, through the Southern Tasmanian Councils Authority, councils are collaborating on a program to support how they manage and respond to climate change. This program aims to support councils in developing local solutions that reflect the community’s needs.

The program will work directly with councils to:

  • Develop a Southern Regional Local Government Climate Strategy and individual council Climate Action Plans for mitigation and adaptation.
  • Engage with communities to identify climate risk and understand local values, awareness and preparedness.
  • Support reporting and measurement systems to implement, revise and update the Climate Action Plans.

State Government

The new Tasmanian Government agency, Renewables, Climate and Future Industries Tasmania (ReCFIT) has now formed. It brings together the Tasmanian Climate Change Office (in the Department of Premier and Cabinet) and Renewables Tasmania (in the Department of State Growth). ReCFIT reports directly to the Minister for Climate Change and the Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction and is supported by the Department of Treasury and Finance. It has been allocated $15 million over four years for its establishment and operations. Other climate announcements in the State Budget included the yet-to-be-released Climate Action Plan 2021‐26 with $10 million over four years, $180,000 for a Youth Climate Leadership Program for High School students, and $30 million in loans over two years for the Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme.

The draft Climate Change (State Action) Amendment Bill[2] has been tabled in Parliament and is expected to have its second reading in March when Parliament resumes. The Bill website includes the Minister for Climate Change’s draft second reading speech, providing useful insights into the State Government’s thinking. It was pleasing to see many of the issues that LGAT raised in our submission[3] being addressed in the Bill.  We will continue to advocate to ensure that local government’s role is appropriately reflected in the Bill.

In addition, we made a strong representation in our submission[4] to the scope of the Draft Tasmanian Planning Policies (TPPs) that climate change must be one of the central challenges, alongside growth and housing, that the policies seek to address. The TPPs are a critical opportunity to embed climate change into how we plan our cities and towns. In particular, we sought that the State Government directly engage with councils on this issue.

Collaboration

In November last year, we partnered with Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) and the University of Tasmania (UTAS) and the State Government, to run the first Tasmanian Built Environment Climate Summit. The summit had over 80 participants, a mix of local government, State Government, UTAS and the private sector. The agenda covered emissions reduction and adaptation in the context of the built environment. The plenary included Roger Jaensch, Minister for Climate Change, Rufus Black, Vice Chancellor of UTAS and Ellen Witte Principal and Partner at SGS Economics and Planning. The Minister thanked LGAT and the sector for their contributions into the review of the Climate Change (State Action) Act 2008 and the Climate Change Action Plan and noted the opportunity to work together on measures such as electrification of vehicle fleets.

On May 25 LGAT will host the first state-wide Tasmanian Local Government Climate Change Conference. The one-day conference will bring together councils across Tasmania to learn about the latest climate science and what this means for Tasmania, alongside the practical actions of councils reducing carbon emissions and managing climate risk. Stay tuned for further information.

To discuss LGAT’s policy and advocacy on climate change, please contact Ben Morris, Policy Director, [email protected]

1.  Deloitte Access Economics (2021) Special report: Update to the economic costs of natural disasters in Australia, available at: https://www2.deloitte.com/au/en/pages/economics/articles/building-australias-natural-disaster-resilience.html

2. Available at: https://www.parliament.tas.gov.au/Bills/current/63_of_2021.html

3. Available at: https://www.lgat.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/886221/Climate-Change-Act-and-Action-Plan-LGAT-Submission-Draft-2021.pdf

4. Available at: https://www.lgat.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/1068333/LGAT-Submission-Tasmanian-Planning-Policies.pdf