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Australia’s economy continues to grow
2016 Key Finding2016From 2011 until the end of 2014, Australia’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an average rate of 3 per cent per year. The average annual growth of GDP is projected to be 2.8 per cent during the next 40 years. Continued growth in Australia’s population and economy, including to meet...
Figure ATM8b Australia’s annual emissions (a) per person, and (b) per dollar of real gross domestic product
2016 Graphb Annual emissions per dollar of real gross domestic product, Australia, 1990–2015 Annual emissions per dollar of real gross domestic product, Australia, 1990–2015 Emissions per dollar of real GDP (kg CO2-e) 19900.71 19910.69 19920.66 19930.62 19940.62...
Acronyms and abbreviations 2016
2016 At a glanceAcronym or abbreviation Definition 4WD four-wheel drive ENSO El Niño–Southern Oscillation EPBC Act Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 GDP gross domestic product GPS global positioning system ICOLLs intermittently closed...
Australia’s emissions in context
2016 Report Content2016 Climate Pressures Greater Brisbane Greater Darwin Greater Hobart Greater Melbourne Although Australia’s emissions in...
Trends in emissions
2016 Report Content2016 Climate Pressures Greater Melbourne Greater Sydney Absolute aggregate emissions Between 1990 and 2015, Australia’s national GHG inventory suggested that emissions...
Population growth and urban development: Tourism and recreation
2016 Report ContentEconomic activity as a driver of environmental change
2016 Report Content2016 The production of goods and services requires energy and materials—metals, minerals, water, food and fibre—all of which come from the environment. The impacts of resource extraction, production, transport, use and waste generation are central to how economic activity affects...
Risks to the coastal environment 2016
2016 At a glanceAt a glanceDespite concerted efforts to manage pressures on the coast, there remains residual risk that impacts will still occur. Here we categorise each of the pressures identified in this report in terms of their likelihood to cause impact and the severity of that impact, once current...
Drivers of environmental change
2016 Report Content2016 Two drivers will continue to shape Australia’s environmental challenges in the coming decades: population growth, distribution and composition; and economic activity. Population and economic drivers lead to a range of specific pressures, which can be global, national,...
Atmosphere
2016 Report Content2016 Coasts Pressures Greater Brisbane Great Barrier Reef Greater Sydney Indian Ocean Airborne emissions Australia’s...
Decoupling population change and economic activity from environmental harm
2016 Report Content2016 Introduction If managed well, drivers such as population change and economic activity can benefit sustainable development, particularly through technological and institutional innovation, and changes in human behaviour. Successive SoE reports...
Increased traffic
2011 Report Content2011 Built environment Pressures Both population and economic growth typically cause increased traffic, which can increase traffic congestion. Unless mitigated, traffic congestion tends to increase more quickly than...
Economic growth
2011 Report Content2011 Introduction 4 Economic growth Over the past century, the structure of the Australian economy (as reflected in employment by industry) changed markedly. The significance of agriculture reduced, manufacturing declined from peak levels reached in...