"That big drop in agriculture was twice the emissions reduction that came from the record rollout of renewables. But it's all built on the suffering of Australia's farmers under drought,"Climate Council senior researcher Tim Baxter said.
The weather outlook is improving and the livestock sector is poised to rebound swiftly when the drought breaks.
Showers and thunderstorms forecast for the coming week are expected to deliver falls of 20 to 40 millimetres across the eastern half of NSW,with a likelihood of far heavier falls in some areas. However,more will be needed for significant widespread pasture growth.
"A break in the drought could push our emissions so they are again trending upwards,"Australian National University Climate Change Institute Professor Mark Howden said.
Australia's national emissions hit a low of 528 million tonnes in 2016 and have remained between 533 and 532 million tonnes since 2017.
Professor Howden said while Australia's emissions were"almost flatlining",when the drought finally broke livestock emissions would likely rise by 4 million tonnes a year.