New independent research commissioned by Greenpeace has revealed the shocking impact of the deforestation crisis in Australia, with huge swathes of federally-mapped koala and threatened species habitat bulldozed in Queensland.

The new research reveals how little is known about the destruction of native forests and bushland in Australia, with an area the size of the MCG bulldozed every two minutes. The majority of deforestation is occurring in Queensland, driven primarily by beef production.

The data reveals that 2.2 million hectares of forest and bushland was bulldozed in Queensland in just five years — 2.1 million hectares of which was federally-mapped threatened species habitat. Over 730,000 hectares of this was endangered koala habitat.

In Australia, over 90% of deforestation occurs without Federal environmental assessment due to a legal blindspot in our nature laws, the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC), which this year faces once-in-a-generation reforms.

Gemma Plesman, senior campaigner at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said the unregulated destruction of forests and bushland for beef production can not be allowed to continue unchecked.

“The vast majority of deforestation in Australia is for beef production, much of which goes to large companies like McDonald’s, Woolworths and Coles — most consumers would be horrified to know that their steak dinner could be fuelling forest and wildlife destruction,” Plesman said.

“It doesn’t need to be this way. The majority of Australian beef is already deforestation-free but currently, companies like McDonald’s do not have adequate systems in place to rule out deforestation from their supply chain. 

“In the midst of a biodiversity crisis, companies purchasing beef have a responsibility to eliminate deforestation from their supply chain — a practice which is both unnecessary and out-of-step with global demand for responsibly sourced beef.

“This shocking data should be a wake-up call to companies who are effectively hiding the deforestation in their products from consumers. It’s time for them to lead the way with strong commitments to bulldozer-free beef.”

Meghan Halverson, co-founder Queensland Koala Crusaders and conservationist, said that unregulated deforestation is taking a deadly toll on native wildlife, killing and maiming millions of animals every year and placing threatened species like the koala at risk of extinction.

“Around 50 million animals are killed every year in Queensland and NSW alone by deforestation. As a wildlife carer, I see firsthand the horrific injuries inflicted on native animals like koalas and hairy-nosed wombats from deforestation, fires and the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation,” Halverson said.

“Australia holds the unenviable title of world leader in mammal extinctions. It is simply not good enough that we have one of the worst rates of deforestation in the world, alongside places like the Congo and Amazon Basin. 

“If the Labor government is to hold true to its promise of “No New Extinctions”, it must urgently introduce the strong laws needed to protect native animals from habitat destruction.”

—ENDS—

High res images and footage of deforestation can be found here

For interviews please contact Kate O’Callaghan on 0406 231 892 or kate.ocallaghan@greenpeace.org

This year we have had a huge increase in our Creative Confrontation Unit’s capacity. Thanks to your support, we hired three new full-time staff members from other Greenpeace offices around the globe including a former Greenpeace captain! All three have plenty of experience in taking creative actions. Between our Whales Not Woodside and Electrify campaigns, we have put a great deal of effort into holding specific corporations accountable for their responsibility to the environment. 

Holding Woodside to account in Western Australia

We organised a silent protest at Woodside’s AGM in April, inviting local school strikers to learn the ins-and-outs of banner painting (a more complex task than you’d imagine!), and in partnership with local groups in WA, organised a Paddle Out event at Fremantle Beach to rally the community to turn the tide on Woodside! Once we were at sea with the Rainbow Warrior, we also exposed Woodside for leaving toxic oil towers to rot in the ocean, which they have since said they will clean up.

Electrifying our engagement

As part of our Electrify campaign, we have been putting pressure on Australia’s biggest retailers to commit to switching their fleet to 100% electric cars and trucks, powered by wind and solar. Tactics for this so far have included delivering thousands of petition signatures to the head offices of the major supermarkets, and a national week of action flyering and surveying customers at retail stores. The Electrify policy team also held a lobby day at Parliament where volunteers met their local MPs to call for caps on pollution from new cars. The tactics were made possible thanks to our wonderful volunteers from across the country who generously donated their time to challenge Bunnings, Coles, Woolworths and Aldi and lobby for political action.

Keen to get involved in Non-Violent Direct Action with Greenpeace?

One of the great things about NVDA is that it is inclusive. There is a place for everyone at a Greenpeace action, and we’ll always make sure that you are never put too far out of your comfort zone. For example, there will be people needing to be driven somewhere, banners to be painted, and sandwiches to be made. Greenpeace also covers the expenses, fines, and legal fees for our activists!

If you, or someone you know is interested, head to our Volunteers sign up form! We’d love to see our Green Guardians taking part if you are able. 

And as always, thanks to your legacy gift, we will be doing activism in your memory for a long time to come.

Today’s announcement will see Woolies phase out more than 3,000 internal combustion engine vehicles in its fleet, with renewable-powered electric vehicles, by 2030. 

With thousands of stores across Woolworths and Big W brands, the Woolworths Group serves more than 22.7 million Australian customers on average each week.

“As the world looks to zero emissions, Woolworths is showing how businesses can play a vital role in addressing the climate crisis – by rapidly reducing emissions, setting new standards in sustainability, and showing what’s possible,” Greenpeace Australia Pacific senior campaigner Violette Snow said today.

“Diesel trucking is a major contributor to air pollution and is fuelling serious health issues in communities like Maribyrnong, who have declared a ‘Health Emergency’ to combat the issue. 

“The country’s largest supermarket is leading the transition to 100% wind and solar powered transport and marks a vital step in curbing climate pollution, benefitting both local communities and our planet. 

“Customers, investors, staff and stakeholders expect businesses to do the right thing. 

“At a time of climate crisis, every business must now be a ‘climate business’. We must accelerate the phase-out of fossil fuels and rapidly transition to clean, renewable energy sources.

“This announcement sends a strong signal to Australia’s major retailers including Coles and Aldi: it’s time to electrify your fleet.”

The move further advances Woolies’ climate credentials, following the retailer’s commitment in 2020 to source 100 per cent of its electricity needs from renewable sources by 2025 – a move welcomed by Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

“Today’s announcement sets Woolies apart from their competitors. The onus is now on other major retailers like Coles and Aldi to follow suit and accelerate on their commitments to cleaner, greener transport,” Ms Snow added.

—ENDS—

Australia is the sunniest continent on earth. That means we’ve got the best access to solar energy in the whole world! 

And many Aussies are making the most of this sunshine to cut costs and fight climate change. Millions of Australian households have installed rooftop solar, which is quickly overtaking coal in national electricity generation.

Although we’re already powering our homes, businesses and vehicles with the sun, our transport system is still not taking advantage of this bountiful power source, but instead is still running on polluting oil.

Transport is one of the biggest sources of climate pollution in Australia – it alone counts for almost 20% of our total emissions – and it’s still growing! The need to electrify our transport system and power it with renewables like solar has never been more urgent.

Big businesses are making progress on switching to renewable energy like solar. Over 40 of Australia’s largest electricity-using companies including Coles, Woolworths and Aldi have already made a commitment to 100% renewable electricity by 2025.

So these companies are well placed to take the next step: committing to renewable-powered cars and trucks!

As part of our Electrify campaign, we’re urging Australia’s biggest companies to make the next renewable energy commitment: electrifying their cars and trucks and powering them with renewables.

IKEA is currently in poll position, but our biggest supermarkets are lagging behind, with Coles only scoring 2.55/10 in our Electrify Fleets rankings.

Thousands of customers are sending emails to Coles, Woolies and Aldi to say they want their groceries delivered by clean, electric vehicles – and you can too!

Join the electrification revolution by emailing Australia’s top supermarkets here.

See how other major companies ranked in our Electrify Fleets ranking here.

Rankings headlines

Greenpeace’s 2023 Electrify Fleets Rankings reveals:

• IKEA topped the list, scoring 9.5 out of 10, while the podium was completed by Bank Australia with a score of  7.5 and Westpac with a score of 6.5
• Bank Australia received an honourable mention for not only its commitments to fleet electrification but also ruling out lending for fossil fuel vehicles
• Major supermarkets have a lot of catching up to do, with Woolworths scoring 3 out of 10 and Coles scoring 2.5 out of 10
• Rental car company Avis took out the wooden spoon, with a score of 0.0, with Aldi, Officeworks, JB Hi-Fi, Myer, and David Jones rounding out the bottom of the pack 
• The national average score of companies ranked was only 3 out of 10, showing Australian companies really need to hit the accelerator on cleaning up transport emissions

Alongside the rankings, Greenpeace Australia Pacific today released a new report, Charging Corporate Action: The Case for Renewable-Powered Electric Vehicle Fleets, which shows that by 2025 electric vehicles will soon be the cheaper option for corporate fleet managers when acquiring and operating new vehicles.

Report findings

Greenpeace Australia Pacific’s new report, Charging Corporate Action: The Case for Renewable-Powered Electric Vehicle Fleets, shows: 

• Fleets make up more than 40% of new car sales each year, with approximately 450,000 purchased for business, government and rental fleets annually. 
• Switching to renewable-powered electric cars, utes and vans in corporate fleets could reduce annual climate pollution from cars by up to 10% and light commercial vehicles by up to 30% according to estimates based on the market share of corporate fleets. 
• This will help make a wider range of more affordable electric cars accessible to more Australians sooner, given that fleet vehicles typically move quickly into the second-hand car market. 
• In more developed international markets, electric vehicle uptake has followed a sharp adoption curve that picks up rapidly after hitting 10% of new car sales. As fleets are responsible for over 40% of new car sales each year, businesses have a key role to play in hitting the tipping point of 10% of new vehicle sales to accelerate electric vehicle adoption in Australia. 
• By 2025, the total cost of ownership gap for medium passenger vehicles falls below zero for all utilisation bands.

Quotes

Greenpeace Australia Pacific Senior Campaigner Violette Snow said the rankings and report demonstrated the business and environment case for renewable energy-powered fleets, and shone a light on the uneven progress made by organisations in Australia.

“Transport is the third largest and fastest-growing source of climate pollution. The companies which operate corporate fleets in Australia can play an outsized role in tackling this present and growing threat to the climate, while benefiting their own bottom line.

“Many companies are already seeing the commercial benefits of switching to electric fleets, and by 2025 electric vehicles will be the cheaper option for all passenger vehicles, and in almost all use cases. Switching could also reduce annual climate pollution from cars by up to 10% and light commercial vehicles by up to 30%. 

“Customers, employees, and investors are all crying out for companies to show leadership on tackling climate change. It’s time for Australian corporates to get into the fast lane on fleet transition.

“The Electrify Fleets Rankings shows who is making the right choice today. IKEA stands out for its leadership, setting an example of other organisations around Australia. By committing to 100% renewable electricity by 2025, to electrify all cars and vans including a target for zero-emissions last mile delivery by 2025, and to zero-emission electric trucks by 2040, the company is showing what is both possible and right.

“At the other end of the spectrum, Avis, Officeworks, JB Hi-Fi, Myer, and David Jones are now on the record as being stuck in first gear. Major supermarkets Coles and Woolworths also have a lot of work to do. We hope this serves as a starting gun for these companies to hit the accelerator on greening their car and trucking fleets.”

IKEA Australia CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer Mirja Viinanen said:

“Customers have increasing expectations for the retail sector to reduce the environmental impact of its delivery services, and at IKEA Australia we are leading the way by accelerating the integration of electric vehicles into our delivery fleet. We’ve so proud of the progress we have made with our delivery partners so far, and there is much more to do as we journey towards a zero emissions future.”

Bank Australia Head of Impact Jane Kern said:

“Bank Australia’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2035 places us as the most ambitious bank in the country. Transitioning transport, including our own fleet, away from fossil fuels to electric vehicles will be a key part of achieving this target.

“We’ve chosen 2025 to cease funding car loans for new fossil fuel vehicles because the change to electric vehicles needs to happen quickly. We believe it can with the right supporting policies in place to bring a greater range of more affordable electric vehicles to Australia.

“Our customers tell us taking action on climate change is a top priority and we think decisive leadership from businesses and government can help catalyse the action our customers and the wider community want to see.”

Ricky Spencer, EV owner and dad of two from the Blue Mountains, said: 

“As a consumer, knowing a company’s commitment to renewables and achieving net zero is important to me because I believe in being environmentally responsible and supporting companies that share my values. 

“Companies that prioritise sustainability are not only making a positive impact on the environment, but are also positioning themselves as leaders in their industry and demonstrating their commitment to creating a better future for all.

“I’m doing my part to clean up transport emissions by switching to an electric vehicle. I expect the brands I use and buy from to do the same.”

About the Rankings

The Electrify Fleets Rankings is based on an analysis of a range of measures, including commitments to electrify passenger, light commercial and trucking, powering them with renewable energy, progress on a commitment to 100% renewable energy, advocacy behaviours, education and incentive programs to promote electric vehicles and associated supportive policies, and commitments to installing electric vehicle infrastructure for staff and customers. 

—ENDS—

From Re-energise to Electrify!

This year marked the end to our Re-energise campaign, which was a huge success. We smashed all our goals in influencing corporations and governments to switch to renewable energy.

Since the inception of Re-energise, 21 major Australian companies have accelerated their shift towards going 100% renewable by 2025. Bunnings, Woolworths, Coles, Kmart, and ALDI are some of the trusted brands taking steps towards operating on renewable energy. Queensland recently announced a large investment in renewable energy, and other Australian states are upping their game in the renewables race.

We also independently ranked Australia’s best (and worst) energy providers and created a new online resource to help you switch to cleaner electricity; The Green Electricity Guide.

Now that we’ve Re-energised, it’s time to Electrify! One of the biggest industries holding Australia back is the transport industry, and this issue will be the first step of the Electrify campaign.

Transport is the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Australia. This is why we need to transition to cleaner cars and zero-emissions vehicles. Additionally, Australia has no fuel efficiency standards. This makes it more economical for large companies like Toyota to send their most polluting vehicles to Australia.

Fuel efficiency standards typically improve over time, forcing corporations to adopt better practices, or face financial penalties. In the UK and EU markets, petrol cars are expected to be phased out between 2030 and 2035 thanks to fuel efficiency standards. But Australia is lagging far behind.

In September this year, Greenpeace launched ‘The Toyota Files’. An online platform highlighting the car manufacturer’s role in blocking Australia’s transition to electric vehicles. In August, a Sydney Morning Herald article exposed Toyota’s ‘secret plan’ to block better fuel efficiency standards through their influence in the Australian Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Vehicle manufacturing companies can have a massive impact on reducing Australia’s emissions. But cars are just the first step. Long term, we want to see more investment in bikes, e-bikes, rail, trams, and buses to give people accessible and affordable transport options that are good for the environment. To do this, we will be putting pressure on both the government, and corporations like Toyota.

While we want to convince big corporations to make the switch to renewable energy and electric vehicles, we don’t accept donations from any of them. This is why your generous support is so fundamental to sustaining campaigns like Electrify, which in turn help sustain us all.

Optus is the 38th largest electricity user in Australia, using 539GWh of electricity a year – the equivalent of more than 85,000 homes, or nearly all the homes in Hobart. It’s announced that under a new climate action plan, 100% of its electricity requirements will be backed by renewable energy sources by 2025. 

Greenpeace’s research reveals that telecommunications and data centres are some of Australia’s biggest electricity users, streaming through a vast 3,913 GWh of electricity annually – as much as 630,000 Australian homes combined. The sector has been one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, creating nearly 3.1 million tonnes of climate pollution.

REenergise campaign director Lindsay Soutar from Greenpeace Australia Pacific said that today’s clean commitment by Optus should get the telecommunications sector back on the renewable energy track. 

“After years of pressure on the telco sector from Greenpeace and the community, we’re pleased that Optus has today said yes to renewable electricity. Now Optus is dialling in to clean power, all major Australian telcos will be powered by the wind and sun by 2025. The telco sector is now streaming to the front in Australia’s renewable race” she said.

“We’ve been working with Australia’s biggest energy-using companies, from supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths through to Bunnings and Kmart, to accelerate their shift to renewables and make firm commitments to make the switch within the next few years.”

“The appetite for renewable change amongst Australia’s top brands has been huge, with over 40 major companies now committed to power their business with renewable electricity by 2025. These companies together represent almost 12% of corporate and industrial energy use in Australia’s National Electricity Market. 

“At a time when both major political parties fall short on their climate policies, we are pleased to see Australian businesses step up. This sends a strong message that while Scott Morrison and the federal government may continue to drag their feet, Australian businesses and consumers want to see the country powered by cleaner, cheaper renewable energy,” she said.

Greenpeace Australia Pacific is calling on Optus and all major telco and tech companies to sign up to the global RE100 initiative. 

—ENDS—

READ GREENPEACE’S TELCO INDUSTRY BRIEFING PAPER

Glenn Walker, Senior Coal Campaigner for Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said the Morrison Government and big polluting energy companies like AGL need to start urgent planning now for the early retirement of coal.

“The most authoritative forecasting of Australia’s National Electricity Market has coal-burning power stations closing almost three times faster than previously anticipated. The renewable energy revolution has arrived, with cheap solar and wind power pushing dirty coal and gas out of the energy system at ever increasing rates,” he said. 

“The big energy companies and the Morrison Government urgently need to get their heads out of the sand and face the reality that Australia’s dirty, polluting and increasingly unreliable coal-burning power stations need to close within the decade. There are huge opportunities for local power station communities to be at the forefront of the renewable energy revolution, but this can only be fully realised if planning starts now.

“AGL, Australia’s biggest climate polluter, can no longer pretend it can mine and burn coal out to 2048, as is currently planned. It’s downright stupid and only serves to financially damage the company and waste precious time for local communities to plan for change.

“Similarly, the Federal Government’s preference to play dumb climate politics hurts local power station communities and consumers most. Scott Morrison talks about Australia becoming a hydrogen superpower, but it’s now clear from AEMO’s modelling that this means we need to phase out coal by 2030. If his government wants to walk the talk on climate action and the hydrogen economy, it needs to get on board with a clear plan for early coal power station retirement.”

Households are demanding cleaner energy and faster action on climate change and businesses are responding by flocking to renewable energy, with major companies including Telstra, Woolworths, Coles and Bunnings now committed to 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2025. Heavy industry is also moving fast to decarbonise, with plans afoot to power Australia’s energy-intensive aluminium smelters with renewable energy by 2030.

Notes

[1] https://aemo.com.au/energy-systems/major-publications/integrated-system-plan-isp 

AEMO’s ISP is the most authoritative forecasting of Australia’s National Electricity Market, guiding both policy and investment decisions.

For more information or to arrange an interview please contact Martin Zavan on 0424 295 422 or email martin.zavan@greenpeace.org OR Maddison Bates-Willis on 0401 244 296 or email maddison.bates-willis@greenpeace.org

Wind Turbine during sunset.

The supermarket chain will source renewable electricity generated at wind and solar farms across Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland.

REenergise campaign director Lindsay Soutar, from Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said Coles’ announcement signified the clean energy momentum building in the corporate sector.

“Supermarket giant Coles’ announcement that it has cut deals to source renewable power through wind and solar projects is a sign of the growing corporate demand for renewable energy. Major brands have a critical role to play to use their buying power to bring even more new wind and solar farms online, as Woolworths and Telstra have committed to do,” she said.

“This week the International Energy Agency has warned we must triple our spending on renewables to maintain a safer climate, and Australian businesses like Coles have a crucial role to play.”

“Now we’d like to see Coles tackling their value chain emissions and investing in electrifying their sizeable transport fleet.”

Coles’ commitment is the latest clean power move by a major Australian company in recent weeks, with a flurry of net-zero emissions reduction commitments from the business sector in the run-up to the COP26 Climate Summit in Glasgow.

Companies that have strengthened their emissions reduction and 100% renewable energy commitments in recent weeks include major manufacturers such as Queensland-based zinc company Sun Metals.

Lindsay Soutar said that renewable momentum from businesses puts pressure on the Federal Government to commit to a stronger emissions reduction target.

“As the Federal Government dithers over a net-zero target, business leaders are rushing towards renewables. Australian companies and manufacturers know that cheaper, cleaner renewable energy is already powering the country, and are making smart investments to shore up their business for the future.”

“Australia’s corporate sector has clearly indicated that it wants strong, decisive emissions reduction, and the Federal Government must develop policies that support investment and growth of renewables.”

For more information or to request an interview contact Fiona Ivits on 0487 003 872 or fiona.ivits@greenpeace.org

About REenergise:
REenergise is a campaign by Greenpeace Australia Pacific calling on some of Australia’s biggest electricity using companies to make the switch to 100% renewable electricity, because it’s better for the environment, and it’s better for the bottom line.

See which companies are leading the renewables race: reenergise.org/rankings/