Australia’s new government has tightened its 2030 climate target. Newly appointed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wants to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 43 percent that year compared to 2005. And the previous government – the Conservative – still aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 26 percent. to 28 percent.

Al-Albani had already promised to reach more ambitious climate goals than his predecessor Morrison. The latter was known to be a supporter of the coal industry and the lack of an Australian target was widely criticized internationally. Finally, Morrison announced last year that the country wants to be climate neutral by 2050. That plan hasn’t changed.

It is not yet clear exactly how the new government intends to lay out the plans. According to the Associated Press, it is very likely that the new parliament will put pressure on the government to tighten the climate target even more. Among other things, the Greens are aiming for a 75 percent cut.

With the new target, Australia is getting closer to the plans of other advanced economies. For example, Canada has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent, and the United States is aiming for 52 percent. In recent years, Australia has repeatedly faced natural disasters caused in part by climate change.

Turn off the lights due to the power crisis

The government’s decision coincides with an energy crisis in the country. Earlier today, the energy minister urged NSW residents to turn off their lights late at night to prevent the power grid from collapsing. The minister urged the state’s 8 million residents to turn off their lights between 6 and 8 p.m.

Australia is one of the largest exporters of coal and liquefied natural gas, but it has been suffering from an energy crisis for the past month. Three-quarters of the country’s electricity is generated using coal. But many coal-fired power plants have suffered outages in recent weeks, while demand for electricity is increasing due to winter. High energy prices around the world also play an important role.