Ms O’CONNOR (Hobart) – Good morning and thank you, Mr President. Today I rise to speak about the vital importance of a climate‑ready Hobart ‑ this beautiful city, Nipaluna/Hobart. Climate change is not a distant threat. It is already shaping the way we live and plan for the future. That is why today, I would like to talk about the Hobart City Council’s Climate Ready Hobart Strategy for 2040, which was launched by the council in September of last year. It outlines several strong, ambitious yet necessary goals and priorities as to how the community can respond to what is the most urgent challenge of our time.
Nipaluna/Hobart’s unique geography, cradled as we are between Timtumili Minanya (the River Derwent) and Kunanyi/Mount Wellington makes us particularly vulnerable to some of the impacts of climate change. We all know bushfire risk is increasing. We all know summer is not what it used to be. It is certainly a very different summer from when I first arrived here in 1989. We have predictions of around 40 per cent rise in high fire danger days in Tasmania by 2050 ‑ within 25 years.
Flooding is another significant issue, with more frequent and extreme rainfall events leading to increased susceptibility to flash floods in Hobart. Many of us here will remember the biblical floods of May 2018 and how they demonstrated that this city’s infrastructure is not equipped yet to cope. Sea levels are also projected to continue rising significantly over the coming decades, increasing the risk of erosion around our city’s coastline. It is important we realise, however, that these are not far‑away concerns. They are real, measurable and already happening.
While it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the scale of the challenge and the sweeping number of problems that global heating poses, it is also critical that we realise, with every great challenge comes opportunity. The Climate Ready Hobart Strategy for 2040 lays out a vision for how we can respond to these challenges by working together. I would, on behalf of the Greens, like to thank the City of Hobart for all their work that they have put into putting the report together. It has three key goals:
The first is working towards Zero Emissions Hobart by 2040. One of the most crucial focus areas in achieving this is Hobart’s ageing, inadequate road‑dependent transport system. More than half of Hobart’s emissions come from road transport, too little from electric vehicles and more efficient mass transit public transport options. Tasmanians also own the most vehicles per person in Australia, accentuating just how heavily car‑dependent we are. Electric vehicle demand is growing, but it will not fix the emissions problems with Hobart transport.
The more people who begin choosing to walk, ride their bike or use public transport, the better for their health, ours as a city and for the climate’s. We, as community leaders, should be encouraging and doing our best to give people that choice. Not only will this reduce air pollution and congestion, improve public health and stimulate economic productivity, but it will create a more liveable city for the residents of Nipaluna/Hobart.
Buildings and energy are another key emissions area. While many in Hobart believe we are fully powered by renewable energy, Tasmania actually imports fossil fuel electricity from the national grid that contributes around 20 per cent of our emissions. Much of it is from dirty coal-fired power stations in Victoria.
As the Hobart Climate Assembly found in their report from March last year, priority should be placed on the electrification of new builds with energy and thermal efficiency, and in phasing out gas connections. Not only would this reduce emissions, but it would save money for Tasmanian households significantly.
The second key goal in the report is to build a climate‑resilient Hobart. This ensures we are not just reacting to disasters but actively preparing. To build a climate‑ready environment, the City of Hobart report emphasises the need for a green city where nature is thriving, and for well‑designed infrastructure and buildings – a cool city in more ways than one. I have spoken about this before in here, but Hobart to date ‑ as far as the Greens can ascertain ‑ does not have an evacuation plan in the event of a bushfire. That is something that should concern us all. There is obviously a lot more work to be done.
Most importantly, to be climate‑ready, the report calls for a cohesive and connected community. The good news is that we do that well in Tasmania. Listening to our communities is at the heart of the climate emergency. It is critical not just in taking on concerns, but being able to build a real sense of optimism – a cautious climate hope. It also strengthens our ability to better prepare for and respond and adapt to climate change. Ultimately, the safest and most climate‑resilient places on Earth will be where there are the strongest communities.
This leads to the third and final key goal of the report: to lead as a capital city.
If we are to achieve real progress, we must first listen to our communities and also to our scientists ‑ and we have many of the world’s greatest climate scientists right here in Nipaluna/Hobart. The science is clear. Climate change is driven by us, as humans, and its impacts are accelerating. Researchers have been warning us for decades, and we must acknowledge their expertise and use it to guide all our decision‑making.
Community voices have been heard through thousands of face‑to‑face conversations, surveys and workshops held by the City of Hobart and they have made one thing clear: people want to be part of the solution. More than 87 per cent of survey respondents were found to be concerned about the effects of climate change on Hobart, and want the City of Hobart to be highly ambitious in reducing emissions. They want a city that is proactive, not reactive. They want their leaders to take action, not just talk about it. To be climate‑ready, we need to be thinking ahead, planning ahead and doing.
The Climate Ready Hobart Strategy is a greenprint or a blueprint ‑ however you want to describe it ‑ for a stronger, safer, and more sustainable city. It gives us a plan, one that we as leaders need to now commit to implementing with determination and urgency. We all have a responsibility to act – not just for ourselves, but for the people we represent and for future generations. We need to be bold and forward‑thinking. Let us make Hobart a city that is not only ready for the challenges of climate change, but one that survives and thrives in the face of them.
