As the climate crisis escalates, conservationists, nature and climate advocates are uniting behind a plan for Australia to be 100% powered by renewables that are good for nature.
The joint report by the Australian Conservation Foundation and WWF-Australia charts a path for renewable energy and nature to work in harmony, and insists that renewable energy projects be built away from high conservation value areas.
The report, Our Renewable Future – a Plan for People and Nature, calls for all levels of government, industry and community to work together to support an energy transition that is good for nature and people.
Renewables account for almost half (40%) of Australia’s main power supply, but the two groups say aggressive disinformation campaigns risk the transition.
The report calls for an end to the misinformation on energy, which is running rife, and blasts the nuclear debate for ‘wasting time we don’t have’.
“We’ve seen attempts to create confusion… these distractions are designed to delay action,” said Australian Conservation Foundation CEO Kelly O’Shanassy.
“The good news is we know how to get this right. This plan charts a way forward towards a future where the renewable energy transition works in harmony with nature,” she said.
“The next Australian Parliament must get cracking and agree on a credible energy plan. We have a once in a generation opportunity to get the policy settings right for a transition that tackles both Australia’s climate and nature challenges,” she said.
The plan identifies key steps that government, industry and communities can take and shows how an energy transition can be done in a way that not only avoids and minimises nature impacts but improves nature overall.
The report concludes renewable projects must be built in the right places with buffer zones to protect nature and ‘no-go’ zones to include national parks, World Heritage areas and key biodiversity areas.
It finds degraded land should be prioritised for development, along with investment in local energy solutions and embedding biodiversity gains into every project.
“Climate action and nature protection are inseparable. Renewables – built in the right places – can not only co-exist safely with nature, but help nature and people thrive,” said Dermot O’Gorman, CEO of WWF-Australia.
“We must rapidly invest in and deploy renewables to meet the scale and intensity of the climate crisis,” he said.
The report calls for an urgent overhaul of national and state environmental laws to ensure every project creates net gains and positive outcomes for nature.
It also calls on governments to invest in Local Energy Hubs to support communities and counter disinformation.
ACF and WWF-Australia are calling on their combined 2.8 million supporters to get behind this vision and ensure the energy transition creates a bright future for all Australians.
The plan is being backed by Prof Brendan Wintle, from the University of Melbourne’s School of Agriculture, Food and Ecosystem Sciences.
“We need the right policies and laws to compel industry to build projects away from high conservation value lands and help restore biodiversity,” he said. “This plan is an important step forward in showing how.”
Executive Summary
Australians share a deep connection with nature. It’s our life support system and it’s in big trouble.
Australia boasts unique and diverse ecosystems and wildlife, earning us a place amongst just 17 ‘mega diverse’ countries globally. Nature isn’t just there to appreciate – it sustains our lives, starting with the very air we breathe. Remarkably, half of Australia’s economy, approximately $900 billion, depends on it too.
But our natural world is dying. Humans have already caused the extinction of more than 100 unique species in Australia, and left more critically endangered, like the swift parrot and Wollemi pine.
People are nature’s catch-22 in that we have largely driven nature’s decline, yet we remain its greatest hope to thrive in the future.
A healthy natural world depends on a safe climate and development practices that actively work to minimise harm and restore it. The nature crisis is caused by climate pollution and habitat destruction.
And here in Australia, we are dismally failing nature with weak laws that offer little protection.
Climate pollution from burning coal, oil and gas is turbocharging extreme weather events like the Black Summer bushfires that burnt 18.6 million hectares and killed or harmed an estimated three billion animals. And sadly, it will happen again. And again. Until there’s very little left. Unless we stop burning coal, oil and gas as quickly as possible.
For nature and our future, we must do better.
The solution? Clean energy from our most abundant natural sources: sun and wind. We need a renewable energy transition that benefits people, climate and nature. To power our own energy needs with renewables it’s estimated we would only require 1,200km2 – 2,000km2 or 0.0002%
of Australia’s bountiful landmass (Blakers 2023).
Already, renewables account for 40 per cent of our main power supply. But – to save what we love – we need to do more.
Right now, there are legitimate concerns surrounding individual renewables projects, some of which have led to habitat destruction and impacts on threatened wildlife. This undermines Australia’s ability to meet its targets to halt biodiversity loss and restore degraded ecosystems, erodes trust in the energy transition and increases community opposition to renewable energy.
Those concerns have led to action and a plan to get this right for nature. Because renewables are the only energy option that can turbo charge the restoration and protection of our natural world.
A transition that is good for people and nature makes good business sense and can deliver real benefits to First Nations and regional communities.
We have an incredible opportunity to restore and grow nature. But only if we get the renewable energy transition right.
The ACF and WWF-Australia’s plan for people and nature charts a way forward towards a future where the renewable energy transition works in harmony with nature.
To do this, we must work together. A safe climate and healthy nature are within reach if governments, businesses and communities come together to take urgent, sustained and collaborative action.
Here’s how:
Governments at all levels need to take action to:
1. Accelerate the transition to a renewable energy system that is good for nature and people through laws, policies, investments and planning.
2. Overhaul national and state environmental laws to ensure all projects, including renewable energy projects, protect and restore biodiversity.
3. Directly invest in policies and programs, such as Local Energy Hubs, to support communities to shape and benefit from the transition.
Industry has to step up and:
1. Site renewables in the right places with adequate buffer zones to protect nature. This means avoiding areas like national parks, world heritage and key biodiversity areas, wetlands or locations critical to the survival of threatened and endangered species.
2. Ensure every project creates net gains and positive outcomes for nature
3. Partner with communities, businesses and government to deliver lasting benefits for people and the local environment
Communities can be advocates to do this right, by:
1. Championing renewable energy that is good for people and nature.
2. Partnering with local community groups, businesses and government to deliver lasting benefits to your community and local environment.
3. Countering disinformation and backing calls for Local Energy Hubs.
