The latest Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) has ranked Australia’s climate policies last with a score of zero.
Released at COP26 in Glasgow, the annual report analyses the climate change responses of 60 countries and the European Union as a whole, which together, account for more than 90 per cent of emissions.
Australia fell four places to 55th overall in the latest report, ahead of only South Korea, Chinese Taipei, Canada, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan, and received a “very low” rating on emissions, renewable energy, energy use and climate policy.
The report said that Australia’s technology investment roadmap was “insufficient” to decarbonise the local economy, reduce fossil fuel use and promote renewable energy.
“Even though the renewables electricity is growing, the experts believe that Australia has failed to take advantage of its potential, and other countries have outpaced it,” the report said.
The CCPI report also found that policy uncertainty was undermining investment and was the cause of energy supply concerns, and Australia’s “lack of domestic ambition and action” had made its way to the international stage.
“The experts describe that the country’s international standing has been damaged by climate denialism by politicians, refusal to increase ambition, and refusal to recommit to international green finance mechanisms,” the report said.
Australia has previously been ranked as one of the least attractive countries for green investing.
Australian Conservation Foundation climate and energy program manager Gavan McFadzean said Australia had ranked poorly as it had not increased its near-term climate ambition like many other countries.
“Although renewable energy is booming in Australia, all the work has been done by state and territory governments and the private sector, which is why Australia is rock bottom on the table of national climate policies,” he said.
“The Australian government’s refusal to budge on 2030 targets has been widely criticised in Glasgow and is out of step with public opinion at home, with a major poll this year showing a majority of Australians, in every federal seat, wants stronger climate action this decade.”
The CCPI has been published by Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and Climate Action Network since 2005 and includes contributions from 450 international experts.
It ranked Denmark as the top performing nation, followed by Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom and Morocco, while Kazakhstan ranked last.
“The same countries that are among those with the worst climate performance, are identical with the globally largest fossil fuel exporters and large fossil fuel users like US, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Australia,” said the Climate Action Network’s Stephan Singer.
“They also belong to the group of those countries that have the highest per capita energy consumption and CO2 fossil fuel emissions as well as much lower renewable energy and energy efficiency achievements.”
Mr Singer said that ensuring global warming remains within the 1.5 degrees limit recommended by the Paris agreement would require “fast and real progress towards deep emissions reductions in this decade and rapid expansion of renewables”.
