Posts tagged ‘energy’
Merri-bek residents call for Peter Khalil to advocate for a National Energy Transition Authority

Climate Action Merribek is one of 70 organisations supporting a Unions Australia submission to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to establish a National Energy Transition Authority in this years budget.
Looking at energy transitions overseas and locally, it is clear that workers and local communities fair best when transition plans are drawn up particular for regional circumstances and co-ordinated between business and all levels of government, with buy-in and engagement by workers and local communities. Here in Victoria the State Labor Government established the La Trobe Valley Authority to help with the energy transition.
Climate Action Merribek has supported just transition for workers and communities facing the phaseout of fossil fuel energy and rise of clean energy.
On April 5th members of Climate Action Merribek presented the submission with a covering letter to the office of Peter Khalil. We called on Wills MP Peter Khalil to support this initiative by Unions Australia, to lobby in caucus for the establishment of a National Energy Transition Authority, and to keep us informed of his advocacy.
(more…)Submission to Climate Change Authority – policies necessary to achieve Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement
Climate Action Moreland prepared the following submission (PDF) to the Climate Change Authority focussing on three sectors: agriculture, energy (electricity) , and transport. These are key areas for Australia to implement climate policy to achieve reduction in emissions to meet Australia’s commitments under the 2015 Paris Agreement. We appreciate the Climate Change Authority collating this information, even though the present conservative government largely ignores the independent advice of this Authority.
Under the Paris Agreement Australia needs to submit a new Nationally Determined Contribution document that outlines all targets and policies to achieve our targets, by early 2020. No backtracking is acceptable (this is written into the agreement as well) This is the ratchet (ambition) mechanism of the Paris Agreement. On current commitments the world is heading for an average temperature rise of between 2.4 degrees to 3.8 degrees Celsius by 2100, as calculated by the Climate Action Tracker website. Australia’s effort is rated as ‘Insufficient’.
Turnbull’s National Energy Guarantee policy prolongs coal hinders renewables
Malcolm Turnbull has rejected the Chief Scientist recommendation of a Clean Energy Target and given us a National Energy Guarantee in it’s place which will mostly focus on reliability and affordability with limited emissions reduction.
This policy is guaranteed to keep coal and gas playing a substantial role in electricity production and act to slow down the take up of renewables, batteries and other despatchable technologies such as pumped hydro and solar thermal.
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Modernising Australia’s electricity grid – CAM’s submission to inquiry
Climate Action Moreland has made a submission to the House of Representatives Inquiry into Modernising Australia’s electricity grid. It is reproduced below.
Warburton Review recommends slashing Australia’s Renewable Energy Target
No surprises in the Warburton Review recommendations published this week. The review panel was after all hand picked to return a result the conservative and ideologically driven Abbott Government would be happy with.
Chaired by self confessed climate denier and former chairman of Caltex Dick Warburton, the recommendations involve changing the target by either closing the scheme to new investors or by setting targets based on the growth of electricity demand. The review also called for the outright abolition of the small-scale RET scheme – the scheme that assists solar PV panels installation on domestic houses and small businesses. This change would push up the cost of panels by 50 per cent according to a Sydney Morning Herald Report.
The review was very narrow in focus and did not consider adequately the climate science imperative for rapid climate change action and need to rapidly transition to renewables in stationary energy, and the need to do this as part of the global uptake in renewables, and nor did it assess or model the substantial health benefits and reduced medical costs provided of reduced air pollution.
Link: Warburton Review of the Renewable Energy Target
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