Greens Call for Classified Climate Risk Assessment to Be Made Public

Greens Leader Adam Bandt, Senator Nick McKim and Senator Mehreen Faruqi during a press conference in the Senate Courtyard at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on May 12, 2021. Sam Mooy/Getty Images

Acting Greens Leader Senator Mehreen Faruqi is calling for the release of an alleged report full of “explosive truths” that will show the government’s decision to support coal and gas is endangering Australia.

She is also accusing the government of hiding the report from the public.

“The people deserve to know what’s coming—Labor must release this critical security report so we can weigh up predicted wars, water shortages, and supply chain collapses against every new coal and gas approval,” Senator Faruqi said.

“If the White House can release the U.S.’s National Intelligence Assessment and assessments by the Pentagon, the prime minister should be able to release a declassified version of the Office of National Intelligence’s Climate Risk Assessment for Australia.”

The Epoch Times has reached out to the Minister for Climate Change Chris Bowen for comment on the Greens’ allegations and to confirm the report exists.

Former Defence Chief Calls For Release of Report

The call from the Greens comes after former high-level defence chief, retired Admiral Chris Barrie, part of the Australian Security Leaders Climate Group (ASLCG), also pushed for the report’s release.

Adm. Barrie told The Sydney Morning Herald in April that he believed the Office of National Intelligence (ONI) had composed and delivered thee report on external climate risks to the government in December, but a declassified version had not been released to the public.

“I expect it might contain things that are a bit scary, but we’re adults, and we are up for it,” he said. “This is about transparency and keeping people informed.”

Greens Senator David Shoebridge has supported Mr. Barrie’s call for greater transparency. He argues that if the public paid for the report, it should be available, as was the case in the United States.

“Australia is increasingly isolated in wanting to suppress security assessments of the big climate risks the world is facing,” Senator Shoebridge said.

“The government is spending hundreds of billions on [the Department of] Defence and yet refuses to address the devastating national security risks associated with the climate crisis.

“A declassified version of the Defence Strategic Review was made public, and the same type of climate risk assessments are released around the world; the same should be done here. ”

Think Tank Says Climate Change a Bigger Risk Than Beijing

Meanwhile, the ASLCG is also calling for a rethink of Australia’s greatest security threats.

“Australia’s greatest and most urgent security threat is posed by climate change, not China, and the federal government has an ongoing duty of care to the Australian people to fully assess, disclose, prepare for and respond to climate security risks,” the group said in a media release (pdf) in April.

Echoing this statement, David Sprat, the director of the Breakthrough National Centre for Climate Restoration, told ABC Radio on Aug. 3 that climate risks being underplayed by the government.

“The first duty of government is to protect people; that’s human security,” he said.

Mr. Spratt argued that given climate scientists were saying the current global environment was changing faster than first forecast, it was important for governments to prioritise messaging about reaching net zero.

“We need to say the climate is the greatest threat to our security and act accordingly.”