Enhanced greenhouse effect – a hot international topic
Box 5 | Australia's policy response
Australia began addressing the enhanced greenhouse effect and its consequences in a formal way through the National Greenhouse Response Strategy, which was endorsed in 1992.
The National Greenhouse Response Strategy was replaced in late 1996 by the National Greenhouse Strategy. It is the primary mechanism through which our international commitments will be met.
Under this strategy, a number of programs have been launched or continued. For example, the Greenhouse Challenge Plus, launched in March 2005, is a cooperative effort between Australian industry and the Commonwealth Government to reduce greenhouse emissions through voluntary industry action. Around 780 Australian companies are part of the program. Another scheme allows carbon 'pooling' so that growers of small forests can group together to participate in abatement programs.
Australia signed the Kyoto Protocol in 1998, but the agreement was not ratified until December 2007.
In 2005, the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory – the annual statistical report on greenhouse gas emissions – stated that Australia had achieved 102.2 per cent increase in emissions and is on course to meet the emissions target of 108 per cent. While this is an increase in emissions, if business had continued 'as usual' the emissions would be 125 per cent of 1990 levels by 2008-2012. The difference between what has been achieved and what would have occurred without change in policy is equivalent to removing every car in Australia from the road.
The response of the New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory governments
About half of Australia's carbon emissions come from coal-fired electricity generating stations. Unlike many countries, we do not have nuclear power stations or large hydro schemes to produce electricity. In Australia, NSW and the ACT are the only states to have mandatory Greenhouse Gas Abatement Schemes. The NSW scheme was introduced in January 2003 and the ACT scheme in January 2005. Both schemes are interlinked and involve cooperation between the states. Electricity retailers must now meet mandatory targets for reducing the emission of greenhouse gases from the production of the electricity they supply or use.
The NSW and ACT targets for emissions are 5 per cent below the level determined in the Kyoto Protocol baseline year of 1990. If participants fail to meet targets, they pay a penalty per tonne of emissions above their targets.
Abatement certificates are issued by accredited organisations for low-emission generation of electricity, reduced consumption of electricity and capture of carbon from the atmosphere by forests. Each certificate is equivalent to 1 tonne of CO2 equivalent associated with the consumption of electricity. These schemes will continue until a national scheme is introduced.
A national response
The Australian Government has set a long-term goal of reducing carbon emissions to 60 per cent below 2000 levels by 2050. To help achieve this goal, in 2008 the Government proposed its Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme to take effect in 2010. The scheme relies on emissions trading to encourage more efficient energy production and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In its initial green paper, the Government proposed a limit (or cap) on the amount of carbon that firms can release. It would then provide a number of carbon ‘permits’ equal to the set limit. Companies would then be able to compete against each other to buy these permits. For some companies it would be cheaper to develop cleaner production technologies (or reduce emissions) than to buy the permits.
Boxes
Box 1. Greenhouse gases
Box 2. What is modelling?
Box 3. Global warming and climate change
Box 4. International deliberations
Related sites
Carbon currency – the credits and debits of carbon emissions trading (Nova: Science in the news, Australian Academy of Science)
Kyoto Protocol
(Australian Government Department of Climate Change)
Carbon pollution reduction scheme
(Australian Government Department of Climate Change)
About greenhouse (Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Accounting)
Summary of the NSW Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme (NSW Government)
ACT Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme (ACT Government)
Page updated November 2008.