Australian Government sued by 23-year-old Melbourne student over financial risks of climate change: ABC NEWS

Katta O'Donnell, 23, is suing the Government over the risks

 to her investments through climate change. 

(Supplied: Molly Townsend)

A 23-year-old Melbourne law student is suing the Australian Government for failing to disclose the risk climate change poses to Australians' super and other safe investments.

Key points:

• The world-first case alleges the Government failed in its duty to disclose climate change's impact on the value of government bonds
• The case is being led by a 23-year-old student and investor who says she did it to "protect her future"
• Experts say it could open the floodgates for other litigation by tying climate change to real-world financial risk
  
  
  The world-first case filed on Wednesday in the Federal Court alleges the Government, as well as two government officials, failed in a duty to disclose how climate change would impact the value of government bonds. 

Katta O'Donnell, the head litigant for the class action suit, said she hoped the case would change the way Australia handled climate change. 

"I'm suing the Government because I'm 23 [and] I think I need to be aware of the risks to my money and to the whole of society and the Australian economy," Ms O'Donnell said.

"I think the Government needs to stop keeping us in the dark so we can be aware of the risks that we're all faced with."

Experts say it is the first where a national government has been sued for its lack of transparency on climate risks. 

Government bonds are considered the safest form of investment, with most Australians invested in them through compulsory superannuation.

Bonds are similar to shares, but instead of investing in companies, the investor lends a government money to build infrastructure and fund critical services such as health, welfare and national security.

Ms O'Donnell, who has invested in bonds independently from her super, said she did it to "protect her future".

However bonds, like shares, can lose value if they become less attractive to the market. This can occur if investors question a government's ability to repay them due to rising government debt, ethical or reputational reasons.

Ms O'Donnell said watching the impact of bushfires in Australia made her worry about the value of her bonds.

Despite the Government not disclosing climate-related risks to its investment products, government regulators are increasingly forcing companies to disclose how climate change will impact their shareholders.

APRA — the Australian financial industry regulator — said in 2017 that climate change was not only a "foreseeable" risk, but also "material and actionable now".

APRA is working with corporate regulator ASIC and the Reserve Bank of Australia to ensure public companies are examining climate risk, disclosing it to investors, and acting on it.

Ms O'Donnell's lawyer, David Barnden from Equity Generation Lawyers, said the duty to be transparent extended to the Government.

"We allege that the Government is misleading and deceiving investors by not telling them about the risks," Mr Barnden said.

Experts say the drought and the threat of bushfires

 in Australia exposes the Government

 to more financial risk compared to other countries. 

(ABC News: Jordan Hayne)

Read the complete ABC NEWS story  By national science, technology and environment reporter Michael Slezak and the Specialist Reporting Team's Rahni Sadler 

 

 

Governments Engaging in Climate Denial While Suffering the Effects of Climate Change: GMO

Politicians who fail to act on climate change should be held responsible. At the very least they are guilty of dereliction of duty and very likely the day will come when they are charged with ecocide. Governments large and small are making irrational decisions that fly in the face of both science and common sense. This is clearly evident in Italy, Australia and the U.S. All three countries are experiencing the effects of climate change in real time yet are opting to do nothing about it.

Just after the Veneto regional council in Italy voted down climate

action, the chamber in which the vote took place was flooded. The council chamber in Ferro Fini Palace began to take on water a couple of minutes after the climate amendments were shot down on Tuesday November 12. This is the worst flooding Venice has seen in more than five decades and it is the first time Venice's Grand Canal has flooded. The council rejected funding for renewable energy, replacing diesel buses and highly polluting stoves.

As wildfires rage in Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison vowed to outlaw environmental boycott campaigns. Four people are known to have died in these fires and crews are still battling over 120 fires in NSW and Queensland. More than one million hectares have been burnt across NSW since September and both Sydney and port city of Geraldton are threatened by these fires. Morrison has refused to acknowledge the link to climate change despite the spike in heat, drought and wildfires.

Nowhere is the situation worse than in the United States. In the face of unprecedented heat, wildfires and extreme weather, President Donald Trump has unleashed an orgy of deregulation. In the three years that Trump has been in power he has eradicated more than 70 rules and regulations designed to combat climate change, conserve the environment and protect the health of Americans.  This includes killing the clean power plan and cleaner car standards.  As part of an insane energy strategy he opposes renewables while supporting fossil fuels (including subsidies).  Likewise, his actions on

efficiency, the Arctic, and plastic oppose common sense.  He has repeatedly demonstrated his contempt for science. This includes gutting the ESA and his war on wildlife which threatens the survival of a number of species from the top to the bottom of the foodweb.  

From Green Market Oracle 

See also:

Quit Obsessing About Climate Change. What You Do or Don’t Do No Longer Matters.: Medium

 

 

#criminales climáticos de la cárcel  #criminalesclimáticosdelacárcel

#jailclimatecriminals  #gaolclimatecriminals
 

Climate Cuts, Cover-ups and Censorship \\ Climate Council: Video

Since 2013, the Australian Federal Government has covered up poor performance with misleading claims, dubious accounting and censorship - and the Climate Council has held them to account at every turn, busting myths, call out misinformation, and sorting fact from fiction. 

Subscribe here: http://goo.gl/JUPEL3 -- 

After thousands of Australians chipped in to Australia's biggest crowd-funding campaign, the abolished Climate Commission has relaunched as the new, independent Climate Council. We exist to provide independent, authoritative climate change information to the Australian public. Why? Because our response to climate change should be based on the best science available. 

We're a fast growing group of people made up of expert Councillors, staff, volunteers and supporters. 

Together we are doing everything we can to spread independent and accurate information on climate change. 

Connect with us here:
 → Website: https://www.climatecouncil.org.au 
 → Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/climatecouncil 
 → Twitter: https://twitter.com/climatecouncil

The Climate Council

Uploaded on Apr 29, 2019

 

 

Related:

June was hottest ever recorded on Earth, European satellite agency announces: Independent

Australian Senate calls on Government to admit Paris failings

The Senate has backed the Australian Greens' motion calling on the Government to make a clear statement about its inaction on climate change.
"It is time for this anti-science Government to front up to the fact they are failing the nation and the planet," Greens environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young

said.

"Enough is enough. Scientists have made it very clear that we must reduce pollution and transition out of fossil fuels. If not, we will sink further and further into dangerous climate crisis. Australia has a responsibility to act for its citizens, environment and the planet. The Morrison Government is in denial and the Senate has called it out.

Australian Liberal Government inaction on climate is dooming our natural environment

The Senate has backed  a Greens' motion declaring climate change is the biggest threat to life on our planet, calling on the Liberal Government to implement serious climate and energy policy.
"The biggest threat to humanity and life on this planet is climate change, and still the Liberal Government don't have a plan to reduce pollution," Greens environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

The Guardian article: Australia urged to model economic effects of 1.5C and 2C climate increases

"Progressive thinktanks and investor groups want the Australian government to model the economic effects climate change will have on Australia under 1.5C and 2C warming scenarios.

This week the new Treasury secretary, Phil Gaetjens, told a Senate estimates hearing the department had done no modelling that compared the difference in economic impacts of 1.5C of warming and 2C.

“We do not do modelling on that,” Gaetjens said. “There wouldn’t be any information in a quantitative sense that I could provide at the moment.”

Read all original article

Climate Council News: Australia’s greenhouse gas pollution levels have risen

It’s a small win, but we’ll take it.
Just this month, we let you know that the current Federal Government was up to its same old tricks... censoring climate data that should have been released months ago. 

When the data was finally released it showed that Australia’s greenhouse gas pollution levels have risen, yet again - for three years in a row. Australians deserve to know about this, because emissions must start trending downwards - immediately, and rapidly - if we’re serious about climate change action.