Many assets built or retrofitted today will be used for decades to come.91 Investment decisions therefore require a thorough understanding of their operational life, benefits and costs. It is critical their planning and delivery aligns with a trajectory that will achieve long-term net zero emissions targets. Without a clear, widely supported target, any infrastructure asset investment with a 40-100 year operating life must consider net zero compliance.
This is particularly critical for infrastructure owned or overseen by state and territory governments, such as land transport, ports, energy, water, waste and social infrastructure, where targets to reach net zero by 2050 are ubiquitously in place.
To meet the Australian Government's net zero ambition, any future infrastructure investment in an infrastructure sector it oversees must plan for net zero. This includes telecommunications, aviation, national surface transport and some social infrastructure.
Most federal assets are long-term, with operating windows extending into the second half of the century. This includes those that are currently under consideration, such as irrigation dams, pumped hydroelectricity and faster rail.