The clock is ticking on the federal government’s big climate reveal: Australia’s 2035 emissions targets. The declaration is expected later this week, and will signal to the world how hard Australia will go to help avoid the worst effects of climate change.

Draft advice by the Climate Change Authority, which is advising the government on the target, flagged it may recommend a range of emissions cuts between 65-75%, from 2005 levels. The government is being pushed from both sides – to either go bold, or settle on a conservative figure.

Adding heat to the debate, the government on Monday released the National Climate Risk Assessment, which laid bare the frightening implications for Australia if global warming is not curbed.

So what must the government weigh up when choosing the 2035 emissions target? What is at stake? And how should we judge whether the government’s decision is good or bad?

Steep emissions reductions will be required across all sectors of the economy to land anywhere inside the 65-75% range by 2035.

Some sides of the debate, such as the Climate Council and Business for 75, suggest Australia can rapidly accelerate its pace of emissions reduction.

To deliver these emissions cuts in ten short years requires real-world investment and action. In the electricity sector, for example, an........

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