Australia said today it could review its carbon emissions target for 2030 in five years if deeper global cuts are agreed, as world leaders prepare for major climate change talks in Paris this month.
Australia has been criticised for not setting high enough targets for carbon emission reductions, with sceptics saying its pledge to cut emissions by 26 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030 falls short of the nation's fair share globally.
Environment Minister Greg Hunt said the government would present its goal at the UN climate conference, but said its emissions cutting program was designed to be adaptable and potentially deeper pledges could be made in the coming years.
"I think what we are likely to do is move into a five-year cycle where there are incremental improvements," he told The Australian newspaper in comments confirmed by his office.
With its heavy use of coal-fired power and relatively small population of 23 million, Australia is considered one of the world's worst per capita greenhouse gas polluters.
France will host the climate talks from late this month, with organisers hoping to conclude a pact limiting global warming to two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-industrial levels.
About 160 countries have already filed voluntary carbon-curbing pledges to underpin the future pact, but scientists say the aggregate effect falls far short of what is necessary.
Speaking on his return from Paris where he attended pre-conference talks, Hunt said there was a "weight of obligation" to reach a global agreement.
He told Australian Associated Press that walking away from the city without doing so would be a "dereliction of duty".
Hunt added that he expected "people will be more determined" to agree on a global deal in France in the wake of the brutal killing of 129 people in coordinated suicide blasts and shootings around Paris on Friday.
