Australia needs to keep producing coal for the sake of the environment, a senior Australian minister has said.
Speaking outside the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos, finance minister Mathias Cormann told CGTN Europe the product of Australian mines was cleaner than the coal which countries like India would otherwise use.
"If we don't provide Australian coal which is comparatively cleaner, then countries like India and others will rely on comparatively dirtier coal and that will actually make the situation for the global environment worse," Cormann told CGTN.
His comments came during the 50th annual meeting of political and business leaders in the Swiss ski resort, which is taking place from 21-24 January with a focus on the intensifying climate crisis.
"Contrary to what some people believe at this forum, Australia is absolutely committed to effective action on climate change," Cormann told CGTN.
Australia has been tackling a series of huge bushfires since the end of last year, fueled by months of severe droughts and record-breaking temperatures across the country that experts have linked to climate change.
The country's southeast has been the most affected, with New South Wales and Victoria among the worst-hit states.
Australia's bushfires have killed at least 30 people and more than a billion animals since September 2019. (Credit: Noah Berger/AP)
The fierce bushfires have killed at least 30 people and more than a billion animals, destroyed more than 2,500 homes and razed 11 million hectares (27 million acres) of wilderness since September 2019.
Australia's prime minister, Scott Morrison, came under attack, with widespread anger over his government's handling of the crisis.
Morrison's government was also scrutinized by many for not taking climate change seriously enough.
But Cormann defended the government's stance saying: "We are only a handful of countries that will not just meet but beat our emissions reduction targets agreed to in Kyoto for 2020. We will beat them by more than 400 million tons of CO2," Cormann said.
Many Australians, however, don't see this as enough. A poll from the Australia Institute on Wednesday showed the country's bushfire crisis has intensified concerns about climate change, with almost seven in 10 Australians wanting the government to lead on climate action.
Australia's reliance on coal-fired power makes it one of the world's largest carbon emitters per capita.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison came under attack for what was seen as a slow response to the bushfire crisis (Credit: Rick Rycroft/AP)
Despite the criticism facing Morrison's government, the prime minister continued to espouse the merits of coal.
In Davos, Cormann reiterated this sentiment, saying: "Australian coal is, environmentally, significantly more efficient than coal that is produced and used in other parts of the world. Australian black coal has got less ash content, less moisture content and higher energy intensity."
Tens of fires are still burning in the states of New South Wales and Victoria despite recent cooler temperatures and rain bringing some respite.
Hot and windy conditions are forecast to return to many parts of New South Wales as experts warn the crisis is far from over.