Is The Environment Australia’s Responsibility?

by Fraser Orr
(Sydney)

There’s a debate currently going on over whether or not Australia should be the first to take real action on climate change. Those on the right wing of Australian politics, who have previously denied the existence of global warming outright, now claim that because Australia only contributes a very small percentage of global pollution, we shouldn’t sacrifice our economy to combat this new issue.

The thinking behind this is that if Australia moves first to institute a carbon tax or emissions trading scheme, we’ll raise the prices of goods and services. Other countries, which decide to hold off on putting penalties on environmentally damaging practices, will still be able to make cheaper products. As a result, Australian jobs will be lost and we’ll have a number of problems on our hands.

This way of thinking has two real problems: One is that the only way we will get other countries to take real action is through leading by example. Australia has a great opportunity at this time to become a leader in world politics, instead of merely following the lead of America and China.

The second issue is that if Australia were to start taking real action, we’d open up the door to the development of sustainable technology. When most countries start to want things like wind farms, solar panels and alternative power, Australia could be at the forefront of this new industry.

The fact is that taking the first step to help the environment would actually be a great benefit to Australia’s economy. The fact is that many political leaders accept large donations from mining corporations, and a number of those with mining interests own portions of the Australian media.

“The Future Makers” is an Australian documentary that looks at a few possible solutions to climate change. Take a look at the trailer here: