The Sunshine Coast Council unanimously passed a resolution to acknowledge the climate emergency at its ordinary meeting on the 10th November. With the initial motion put forward by Cr David Law, the resolution demonstrates strong climate leadership at the local government level and sends a message to the state and federal governments that communities want to see bold climate action to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
After a lengthy debate, the resolution passed unanimously with over 130 people tuning in online to watch the meeting. The Sunshine Coast Environment Council has been working with community groups and individuals advocating for the climate emergency for the past year.
“SCEC is pleased by the unanimous vote to support the resolution. This is a testament to the dedication and leadership of our local council to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and further reinforces Sunshine Coast Council’s ambition to become Australia’s most sustainable region. This is a momentous step for the Sunshine Coast and for Queensland in acknowledging the climate emergency and we hope the next step will be to reduce the council’s net zero emissions target from 2041 to 2030 in line with the current science.”
Said Natalie Frost, Coordinator, Sunshine Coast Environment Council
The motion passed acknowledges the significant action already undertaken by council, accepts the IPCC’s sixth assessment report and recognises that we are in a state of climate emergency that requires urgent and sustained effort to achieve net zero emissions by 2041. It also requests that the CEO prepare an interim report on a proposed governance structure/framework that strengthens council’s daily actions in response to the climate emergency.
“The climate emergency acknowledgement further reinforces the need for the state and federal governments to work harder and faster to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Leadership at the federal and state levels is needed urgently to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.” Said Ms Frost.
The Sunshine Coast Environment Council is the peak environmental advocacy organisation that has been working to protect and conserve the environment since 1980. For more information on how you can get involved in local climate action visit SCEC’s website – https://scec.org.au.