Ambition for a world in transition: Greens announce pollution reduction targets for post 2020

In a speech to the Sydney Environment Institute at Sydney University last night, Greens Leader Christine Milne has announced the party's new post-2020 targets for pollution reduction, saying much greater ambition is required to tackle global warming and help transition the economy.

"The big polluters are polluting for free, and the rest of us are paying the price. It doesn't have to be that way," Greens Leader Christine Milne said.

"The key question is whether the world's political systems are capable of addressing the global warming emergency that's facing us all, on a scale and in a timeframe that gives us a chance of avoiding an unliveable planet.

"To lift our ambition in this crucial global contract, and to provide enormous economic opportunities to new industries and innovators, the Greens post-2020 targets are for 40-50% by 2025 and 60-80% by 2030 taking us on a steady trajectory to reach net-zero pollution by 2040."