Posted
| UpdatedThe NSW Labor Facebook page has published a graphic showing carbon emissions changes under the Liberals.
They claim that "under the Liberals emissions always go up".
Is that correct? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, climate-change, environmental-policy, land-clearing, alp, pollution, australia
Posted
| UpdatedIn 2015, Australia went to the Paris climate conference with a reduction target of 26 to 28 per cent of its 2005 emissions by 2030.
Minister for Resources, Energy and Northern Australia, Josh Frydenberg, characterised this target as "extremely significant" on ABC TV's Q&A.
"The target we took to Paris which was to reduce our emissions by 26 to 28 per cent on 2005 levels by 2030, saw the second highest target taken to Paris on a per capita basis," he said.
Fact Check tested a similar claim from Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull before the Paris conference in 2015 — that claim was found to be incorrect.
Topics: climate-change, pollution, liberals, australia
Posted
| UpdatedMany Australians head to the beach at summer, but the spectre of shark attack is never far away.
The NSW Government announced a test of "smart" drum lines to reduce the risk of shark attacks.
It has been claimed that the test will not the beach safer but will threaten other wildlife.
ABC Fact Check takes a closer look.
Topics: environment, shark, oceans-and-reefs, marine-biology, conservation, states-and-territories, australia, nsw, coffs-harbour-2450, qld, france, south-africa, reunion, ballina-2478
Posted
| UpdatedPrime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has told Parliament Australia's emissions reduction targets of 26 to 28 per cent are "credible and substantial".
"When they are measured on a per capita basis, which is the only way they can reasonably be compared with other countries, they are second only to the emission cuts offered by Brazil," he said.
How do Australia's emissions reduction targets compare on a per capita basis? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: climate-change, environmental-policy, turnbull-malcolm, liberals, australia
Posted
| UpdatedAhead of the Paris climate change conference, Australia, along with many other countries, has submitted its contribution towards cutting carbon emissions.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says Australia's target of a 26 to 28 reduction on 2005 carbon emissions levels by 2030 is "comparable to other countries similarly situated".
Are Australia's targets comparable to "similarly situated" countries? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: climate-change, environmental-impact, emissions-trading, liberals, turnbull-malcolm, australia
Posted
| UpdatedPrime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said that if Australia were to stop all of its coal exports, countries that buy it would import it from somewhere else.
He said that such a move, far from reducing global emissions, would arguably increase them "because our coal, by and large, is cleaner than the coal in many other countries".
Does Australia export cleaner coal than other coal-producing countries? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: coal, mining-industry, climate-change, environmental-impact, mining-environmental-issues, pollution, air-pollution, turnbull-malcolm, earth-sciences, geology, liberals, australia
Posted
| UpdatedEnvironment Minister Greg Hunt says the Coalition's emissions reduction fund, at $13.95 per tonne of carbon, is around 1 per cent of the cost of reducing carbon under the former Labor government's carbon pricing scheme.
Was the cost of carbon reduction higher under the carbon pricing scheme? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, climate-change, environmental-policy, pollution, australia
Posted
| UpdatedTony Abbott says Australia's recently announced carbon emissions targets for 2030 are "not leading" and "certainly not lagging" the field and emissions reduction targets per capita are the "best in the developed world".
But the Federal Opposition and the Climate Change Authority have said Australia is not pulling its weight on preventing climate change. How do Australia's emissions targets compare with other countries? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: emissions-trading, environment, climate-change, environmental-policy, abbott-tony, greenhouse-gas, australia
Posted
| UpdatedAgriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce says that the proposed Shenhua Watermark coal mine on the Liverpool Plains in NSW will be "in the middle of Australia's best agricultural land. There might be other land that is as good, but there's none better".
Is the mine actually located in the middle of the Liverpool Plains, and are the Liverpool Plains Australia's best agricultural land? ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, nationals, gunnedah-2380, breeza-2381
Posted
| UpdatedA recent Federal Court decision set aside approval of a Queensland mine, because the Federal Government had not properly considered environmental advice around two vulnerable species in the area.
Richard Di Natale says it is important that endangered species be considered by the courts because Australia has "one of the highest loss of species anywhere in the world". ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, greens, conservation, richard-di-natale, australia
Posted
| UpdatedTreasurer Joe Hockey said newly released Treasury documents show electricity prices have come down $550 per household since abolishing the carbon tax.
But experts estimates don't come close to the $550 figure. ABC Fact Check investigates
Topics: electricity-energy-and-utilities, environmental-policy, federal-government, hockey-joe, liberals, australia
Posted
| UpdatedOpposition Leader Bill Shorten has announced a plan to generate 50 per cent of Australia's electricity by renewable energy by 2030.
Mr Shorten has encouraged Australians to install solar panels on their roofs, saying Australia has more solar coverage in terms of per square metre than any other continent in the world.
ABC Fact Check takes a look at how Australia stacks up.
Topics: environment, alp, bill-shorten, government-and-politics, australia
Posted
| UpdatedA recent decision to stop the Clean Energy Finance Corporation from funding any new wind power projects isn't the Abbott Government's first move against the wind industry.
Liberal Democrat senator David Leyonhjelm has been a vocal opponent. He claims inappropriate levels of infrasound, regardless of the sources, cause adverse health impacts.
ABC Fact Check investigates some of the claims made by Senator Lleyonhelm.
Topics: wind-energy, alternative-energy, environmental-impact, environmental-health, australia
Posted
| UpdatedA recent move by the Federal Government to ban the disposal of dredge spoil near the Great Barrier Reef has been met with scepticism by environmental campaigners.
Greens Senator Larissa Waters says the Government's plan to ban dumping within the reef's marine park doesn't include the 1 per cent of the world heritage area where 80 per cent of dredge spoil has been dumped in recent years.
ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, greens, environmental-impact, australia, qld
Posted
| UpdatedEnvironment Minister Greg Hunt says Australia's emissions reduction efforts can be compared favourably to the United States.
"If you use the same basis as the United States – 2005 to 2020 – the US is minus 17, we're minus 12 per cent," Mr Hunt said. "If you use the full Kyoto period of 1990 to 2020 the US is minus 5 per cent and Australia is almost exactly the same. So we're very comparable."
ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: federal-government, liberals, environment, climate-change, australia, united-states
Posted
| UpdatedThe US and China have announced a major new agreement on climate change.
Treasurer Joe Hockey says it will be difficult for US president Barack Obama to deliver on his pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 per cent by 2025. "Barack Obama has to get any initiative on climate change through a hostile US congress," he said.
Fact Check investigates.
Topics: environment, world-politics, federal-government, hockey-joe, liberals, australia, united-states, china
Posted
| UpdatedThe UN has warned that without reducing emissions from electricity production, global warming is on track to exceed current temperatures by 4 degrees Celsius by 2100.
Environment Minister Greg Hunt says clean coal technology which will be available in the next five years will "significantly" reduce emissions from Australia's coal-fired power stations.
ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: coal, industry, environmentally-sustainable-business, business-economics-and-finance, environment, environmental-impact, environmental-policy, environmental-management, mining-environmental-issues, environmental-technology, federal-government, liberals, australia
Posted
| UpdatedWhen the Coalition launched its direct action plan in 2010, it drew upon a Californian "million solar roofs" program.
Topics: solar-energy, alternative-energy, environment, federal-government, liberals, government-and-politics, australia
Posted
| UpdatedBefore the 2013 federal election the Coalition repeatedly promised to despatch a Customs vessel to monitor whaling in the Southern Ocean.
Topics: whaling, conservation, environment, mammals---whales, animal-science, science-and-technology, federal-government, abbott-tony, liberals, australia
Posted
A new bilateral agreement signed by Prime Minister Tony Abbott in early September will allow Australia to sell uranium to India for the first time.
In defending the agreement, Mr Abbott said: "India has an absolutely impeccable record when it comes to nuclear non-proliferation."
ABC Fact Check investigates.
Topics: uranium-mining, industry, business-economics-and-finance, world-politics, government-and-politics, federal-government, nuclear-issues, nuclear-energy, alternative-energy, environment, abbott-tony, liberals, australia, india
Posted
| UpdatedAustralia may be known for its unique plants and animals, but how many are undiscovered?
"There's estimated to be about 75 per cent of Australia's biodiversity that's largely unknown. So there's certainly a lot out there still to find," Bush Blitz manager Jo Harding says.
On National Threatened Species Day, Fact Check investigates whether Australia really does only know about a quarter of its plants and animals.
Topics: biological-diversity, environment, animals, science-and-technology, australia
Posted
| UpdatedThe Great Barrier Reef is one of Australia's best-loved natural attractions. Its health has been the subject of much debate, with concerns over industrial and mining developments, dredging, fishing, climate change and pollution.
With UNESCO considering listing the world heritage site as in danger, ABC Fact Check takes a look at the threats to the reef and what is being done to protect it.
Topics: great-barrier-reef, environment, oceans-and-reefs, federal---state-issues, federal-government, qld, cairns-4870, airlie-beach-4802, gladstone-4680, australia
Posted
| UpdatedNews Corp executive chairman Rupert Murdoch says Australia should approach climate change with great scepticism.
In a recent interview, Mr Murdoch said: "At the moment the North Pole is melting a bit, but the South Pole is getting bigger".
ABC Fact Check investigates what is happening in the two polar regions.
Topics: environment, climate-change, antarctica, australia
Posted
| UpdatedOn July 5, 2013, the Coalition launched a policy to create "a standing 'green army' that will gradually build to a 15,000 strong environmental workforce".
Topics: environment, environmental-policy, federal-government, liberals, abbott-tony, australia
Posted
| UpdatedOn September 2, 2013 then opposition environment spokesman Greg Hunt promised $40 million to establish a trust for the Great Barrier Reef.
Topics: great-barrier-reef, oceans-and-reefs, environment, federal-government, liberals, environmental-policy, government-and-politics, australia, cairns-4870, qld