IT has never been a secret that Prime Minister Tony Abbott is, to put it mildly, not overly concerned with the threat of climate change.
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Although he has purported to take climate change "very seriously", his actions and those of his government tell a different story.
The government shocked many when the Clean Energy Finance Corporation was instructed to make no further investments in wind farms or domestic solar power last week.
Having tried to abolish the CEFC twice (and having received a double dissolution election trigger for its troubles), the government seems to have instead decided to cripple the organisation from the inside.
The stated purpose of the CEFC is to "facilitate increased flows of finance into the clean energy sector," to ensure the renewable energy sector becomes viable.
Politics of the decision aside, reducing these types of investments makes little economic sense.
No matter how you slice it, Australia's coal industry is unsustainable.
While the PM busies himself opening coal mines such as the Caval Ridge coal mine, and declaring that "coal is good for humanity," the future of the industry looks worse by the day.
Last November China announced a goal to reduce emissions by 26-28 per cent and cap emissions by 2030, while India announced plans to end coal imports within two to three years.
The price of coal has weakened, from US$71 per tonne a year ago to US$58 per tonne in June - a fall of 17 per cent.
"It is time we had a government, and a Prime Minister, that can lead this country in the right direction on climate change."
The price has more than halved since June 2011.
As other countries increase their own RETs, more will move away from coal.
Now is the time for Australia to strengthen its renewable energy sector.
Almost 2500 jobs have been lost in the renewable sector since the Abbott Government came to power, largely due to uncertainty over the RET, which the government had promised not to review and then reviewed anyway.
Tasmania, in particular, could benefit from increased investment in wind farms.
The $2 billion King Island wind farm project would have produced enough power to supply 240,000 homes, and was forecast to add $220 million to the state government's coffers annually.
Instead, the project has been declared economically unviable.
While the federal government continues to undermine climate action, the effects of climate change are already impacting the country.
We've seen it every summer for the past few years. Devastating bush fires, record temperatures, floods.
The Bureau of Meteorology just recorded the first ever cyclone in July.
The government has so successfully waged a war on climate science that although the science is settled, a University of Tasmania study released last week found almost one in five Australians do not believe in climate change.
That is just absurd.
It is time we had a government, and a Prime Minister, that can lead this country in the right direction on climate change.
This issue is too important to allow the falsely held beliefs of one in five Australians to dictate policy.
The government's concern for the "budget emergency" should extend to protecting the economy from climate change and the decline of the coal industry.
The opportunity to protect ourselves from climate change is fast fading, and the government's inaction - indeed, negative action - on the issue will prove damaging and costly to future generations.
