Assessing climate action plans and emission reduction challenges: evidence from Tasmanian local governments on the path to net zero

Purpose In line with growing international treaties like the Paris Agreement and Kyoto Protocol, the Australian Government aims to reduce emissions by 62%–70% by 2035 and achieve net-zero by 2050. These commitments have intensified the urgency for coordinated climate action across all government levels. Within this national context, Tasmania, though the smallest Australian state, stands out for its pioneering net-zero emissions legislation. This study aims to examine how 29 Tasmanian local councils assess their climate action plans and the challenges they encounter in progressing towards net zero. Design/methodology/approach Through the application of a sequential mixed-method approach, the authors developed a Climate Change Disclosure Index tailored to local government contexts to analyse 520 reports (2007–2023) and conduct interviews with council leaders and sustainability consultants. Findings The results show fragmented emission reduction implementation in local governments and tensions between commitments and practical limitations in federated systems. Through thematic analysis, seven key challenges were identified: inadequate capacity and resourcing, leadership-environmental knowledge gap, climate strategy scepticism, business engagement, risk aversion, insufficient legislation and prioritisation coherence. This study advances the understanding of subnational climate governance, highlighting need for policy coherence, funding and capacity-building frameworks to achieve measurable outcomes. Practical implications The findings of this study offer practical insights for policymakers in linking strategic objectives to key performance indicators through baseline setting, progress monitoring and sustainability reporting. This integrated approach can guide councils in developing greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting methods, incorporating emissions data and adopting third-party assurances. Furthermore, state governments can play a facilitative role by establishing standardised templates for local GHG inventories, as uniform reporting practices enable comparability, benchmarking and policy coherence across jurisdictions. In addition, the climate disclosure index developed in this study can be used by other organisations, policymakers, regulatory bodies and practitioners to assess organisations’ preparedness towards net zero. Originality/value This study contributes to the climate governance literature by providing evidence on how local governments implement net-zero commitments. By integrating legitimacy perspectives, this study highlights how multilevel governance pressures shape the ambition and capacity for implementing climate action plans in subnational climate strategies. In addition, this study develops a climate disclosure index tailored to the local government context to assess organisations’ policies, action plans, strategies and preparedness towards net zero.