Frequently asked questions

Anyone interested in the agriculture industry is invited to participate.

This consultation aims to get a broad cross-section of the Western Australian primary industries to better understand the sector's priorities and the actions that should be taken by government to achieve net zero.

The 2020 Emissions Baseline Report for the Agriculture Sector in Western Australia published in 2022 analysed agricultural emissions. The report provides a baseline for the agriculture sector and estimates for each industry.

SERS are plans for reducing emissions which support the State’s target of net zero emissions by 2050. SERS will evaluate mitigation options for different sectors, and analyse the costs and benefits, including implications for economic growth and diversification, employment, regional development, and Aboriginal engagement. SERS will support emissions reduction across the whole WA economy.

Sectoral emission reduction strategies (SERS) are aimed at supporting the State Government’s vision ‘to harness Western Australia’s innovation and wealth of natural and mineral resources to achieve net zero emissions and ensure a prosperous resilient future for all Western Australians.’ (WA Climate Policy 2020).

The objectives of SERS are to identify low-cost abatement options and ‘provide robust and credible emissions reduction pathways for Western Australia with tangible actions for reducing emissions consistent with the government’s target of net zero emissions by 2050’.

State Government has committed to working with all sectors of the economy to achieve its goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

Alongside agriculture, the government is evaluating ways to reduce emissions from electricity, industry (including resources and manufacturing), transport, buildings, waste and land use.

Most Australian states and territories have developed, or are developing, net zero plans, strategies and interim targets. 

Many countries, including key trading partners, have net zero plans.

The global effort to mitigate and adapt to climate change is also presenting market opportunities for the agricultural sector. As economies transition towards lower emissions, opportunities may emerge for agriculture industries that can demonstrate more emissions-efficient production systems, or even carbon neutrality.

International agreements are leading to significant global trade and investment pressures, and intensifying requirements for both the private and public sectors to demonstrate environment, social and governance (ESG) credentials to remain competitive.

SERS is not intended to create a regulatory burden for business. Sectoral emissions reduction strategies are plans for how different sectors can reduce their emissions.

Emissions reduction in the agricultural sector is a win-win for land managers. There are a number of financial opportunities for the sector that also provide environmental benefits while improving productivity and increasing resilience to a changing climate.

Once the survey closes on Friday 14 April 2023, responses to the survey questions will be used to shape the agricultural component of the SERS. 

The SERS website will provide updates from SERS consultation from all industries. 

If you have questions about agricultural emissions email: emissions@dpird.wa.gov.au.

A Sectoral Emission Reduction Strategies Frequently asked questions document is available on the wa.gov.au website.

If you have questions about agricultural emissions go to the DPIRD website or email: emissions@dpird.wa.gov.au.

To find out more about SERS, emissions, DPIRD research and events subscribe to the Climate resilience mailing list. 

DPIRD has researchers across the department and in the Research Stations looking at ways that we can reduce emissions, adapt to climate change and still be productive and profitable in the primary industries. Katanning Research Station has a Carbon Neutral 2030 plan. Researchers look at mitigating and adapting to climate change.

There is also blue sky thinking for transformational changes to WA primary industries to future proof regional WA from the effects of climate change.

We have researchers working on:

• desalination plants
• carbon neutral agriculture and sequestering carbon through planting trees and storing carbon in soil
• working out ways to record emissions, 
• observing and recording weather patterns
• modelling the agricultural changes required across Western Australia
• looking at the life cycle of a product to identify ways to reduce emissions. 

There are also scientists and economists researching regenerative agriculture and how it might reduce emissions and increase the health and productivity of the soil. The climate resilience webpage will direct you to the various projects addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation.

There’s a difference between climate and weather.

Weather fluctuates day in, day out, whereas climate refers to long term trends.

Agriculture is strongly affected by changes to weather patterns and climate and climate change is affecting Australia's natural environment and the human systems it supports. 

Western Australia's climate has changed over the last century, particularly over the last 50 years. Average temperature has risen about 1°C. Rainfall has increased over the north and interior, declined along the west coast, and declined by about 20% over the lower south-west. Fire risk has increased across the state.

For details on climate in Western Australia go to the webpage for climate trends in Western Australia.

There have been periods of global warming and cooling—also related to spikes and lulls in greenhouse gases. But those historic increases in CO₂  led to serious environmental disruptions, including mass extinctions. Today, humans are emitting greenhouse gases at a far higher rate than any previous increase in history.  

There is nearly 100 percent agreement among scientists. 782 scientists (and hundreds more contributing authors) analyzed more than 66,000 peer-reviewed studies in the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports on climate change. The IPCC says that global warming is accelerating, and will reach 1.C above pre-Industrial levels around 2030 - a full decade earlier than previously forecast.

If governments, business, and individuals begin taking significant action now, we can keep warming within the 1.5C target set by the Paris Agreement.