Emissions, the Strategic Omission: Climate Security and Australia’s National Intelligence Community

Abstract

The Australian Government has identified climate change as being a threat to national security. With the emerging prospect that a climate security policy will be established, the question arises as to how the extraordinary powers of Australia’s security agencies could be effectively, but proportionately, utilized. Currently, discourse remains restricted to the tactical capacity of the Department of Defence or intelligence agencies’ assessment functions. Conversely, this article outlines strategic opportunities for Australia’s National Intelligence Community to enhance substantially the Commonwealth’s climate security response. Specifically, the Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation (AGO), the Australian Federal Police (AFP), and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) are found well placed to support the monitoring of breaches to specific components of Australia’s federal climate change legislation. Hence, it is recommended that the collection and provision of greenhouse gas emissions data be prioritized within AGO, and, regarding the AFP and ACIC, that Subsection 22XF(1) of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 be amended to include a criminal penalty to form a hybrid criminal/civil regime.