The Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, the Very Revd Dr Andreas Loewe, wrote to Prime Minister Scott Morrison urging the Government to act more urgently to respond to climate change and committing St Paul’s Cathedral to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. In a letter sent last month, Dean Andreas, writing on behalf of the Cathedral congregation and staff, said it was a matter of “gospel justice” to act decisively now in order to save the planet.
The Prime Minister has sent a letter in reply, outlining initiatives by the Commonwealth to combat climate change.
“For Australia, it is not a question of if or when we will reach net zero, but importantly how. That is why we are investing in priority new technology solutions, through our Technology Investment Roadmap initiative. We are investing around $20 billion to achieve ambitious goals that will bring the cost of clean hydrogen, green steel, energy storage and carbon capture and storage to commercial parity. We expect this to secure more than $80 billion in total investment in the decade ahead,” the Prime Minister wrote.
“Through our $1.6 billion emission reduction package announced in the 2021-22 Budget, the Government is investing $275.5 million to accelerate the development of clean hydrogen hubs in regional Australia. These will transform Australia’s transport industries, mining and resource sectors, manufacturing, and fuel and energy production.”
“For Australia, it is not a question of if or when we will reach net zero, but importantly how. That is why we are investing in priority new technology solutions, through our Technology Investment Roadmap initiative. We are investing around $20 billion to achieve ambitious goals that will bring the cost of clean hydrogen, green steel, energy storage and carbon capture and storage to commercial parity. We expect this to secure more than $80 billion in total investment in the decade ahead.”
The Dean said “I am glad and grateful that the Prime Minister took time to respond to my letter. I would say to him that tackling climate change requires a global, planned and agreed approach that sets clear targets to prevent further damage to our world and reverses the effects of global warming. And I encourage [our congregants] to write to him, and to your local MPs and Senators, to let them know what you feel about the course they propose, and what things you feel needs doing in addition to what’s proposed.”
You can read the Prime Minister’s letter in full here.
Feature image courtesy of the ABC