Key messages

•  Infrastructure is sustainable when it is planned, designed, procured, constructed and operated to optimise economic, environmental, social and governance outcomes over the life of the asset.

•  By integrating sustainability into planning and decision-making, Australia will meet present needs without compromising the future.

•  Infrastructure assets, networks, services and communities will be critical in meeting government and industry commitments to sustainability, including reducing emissions.

•  Australian governments have a common aspiration to net zero emissions but there are varied commitments and targets.

•  As infrastructure can operate for 40-100 years, investments made today must consider a net zero future, including investing in technology that enables it.

•  Governments must leverage a comprehensive understanding of each sector's emissions profile to coordinate action, identify opportunities and plot short-and long-term emissions reduction pathways.

•  Certainty, confidence and adequacy of policy settings helps investors to manage risk. Prioritising long-term sustainability outcomes can attract investment in new and emerging low-emissions technology and industries, assist post-pandemic recovery and create jobs.

•  Policy reforms need to acknowledge they do not occur independently of the infrastructure that is in place and investment in the future, so they increase value for money outcomes and contribute to emissions reduction while maintaining a strong economy and high quality of life and affordability for all Australians.