Damning environmental scorecard as NSW abandons old Net Zero Plan
The Minns government will scrap the Net Zero Plan it inherited from the Coalition and write a new one to meet legally mandated reductions of 50 per cent by 2030, 70 per cent by 2035 and net zero by 2050. At present, it is expected to meet 46 per cent in 2030 and 62 per cent in 2035, according to the Net Zero Emissions Dashboard updated on Thursday.
The 2035 outlook is now worse than it was a year ago when the NSW government first revealed it was on track to miss the targets.
Minister for Climate Change and Environment Penny Sharpe said the new Net Zero Plan would take a sector-by-sector approach to decarbonisation, with input from all relevant portfolio ministers for the first time.
'The previous Net Zero Plan was done in 2020 and the numbers that were used were best-case scenario. A lot has changed since then,' Sharpe said. 'Our new plan will take in the latest information and help us reach the targets that the Minns government enshrined in law.'
In parliament on Thursday, Sharpe tabled the NSW Environment Protection Authority's statutory State of the Environment report, which comes out every three years, and also the whole-of-government response to the Net Zero Commission's first annual report released in November 2024.
The 676-page State of the Environment report reveals a devastating decline since the last report in 2021, and the capacity of NSW ecosystems to sustain life has been slashed to 29 per cent of its natural level since colonisation.
Eighteen species of animals were added to the threatened species list since 2021, and 18 species of plants since 2020. The population and distribution of native mammals, birds and fish, and the impact of invasive species were all moderate to poor and getting worse. Without effective management, only half of the 657 plant species and half of the 991 land animal species listed as threatened are predicted to survive in 100 years' time, the report says.
'The government does not shy away from the grim reports on the environment,' Sharpe said. 'I am focused on turning this around. Action on the energy transition, biodiversity and law reform to better protect the environment is under way. Turning the dial will take time and we are honest about that.'
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