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CLEANaS Submission supporting Climate Change Bill

28/11/2020

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Below is the CLEANaS submission to Parliament for the  Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) Bill 2020 and Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2020.
​27/11/2020
 
House Standing Committee on the Energy and Environment
Committee Secretariat
PO Box 6021
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Environment.Reps@aph.gov.au
 
Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) Bill 2020 and Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2020
 
To the House Standing Committee on the Energy and Environment regarding the Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) Bill 2020 and Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2020
 
Dear Committee Secretariat,
 
Thank you for the opportunity to provide a submission into the Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) Bill 2020 and Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2020 (Climate Change Bill 2020) and taking the time to consider our submission.
 
This is a submission supporting the Climate Change Bill 2020.
 
The government is responsible for the environment, the health and wellbeing of its citizens, and the financial security of the nation. As we see the impact of increased carbon emissions, we also find evidence of the deleterious impact on Australian native wildlife, the Australian people and the wealth of the nation.  There is only 6-7 years left at present emission rates of the 2013-2050 emission budget to stay below 1.5°C.  Therefore, at current emissions rates, Australia will have exceeded its carbon budget for 2050 by 2026. By 2055 Australia will experience economic losses on par with covid, getting worse every single year due to unchecked climate change.5
 
CLEANaS is the Clean Energy Association of Newcastle and Surrounds, a not-for-profit association formed in 2012 by a group of locals passionate about clean energy.[1] CLEANaS is dedicated to driving the uptake of clean energy so that our region can transition from its current dependency on fossil fuels to a more competitive and sustainable local economy. We achieve this by working with our partners to demonstrate profitable community-led and community-owned clean energy projects; raise the profile of clean energy in the local economy through education and awareness raising; and by improving access to financing mechanisms and affordable technologies so that investment and activity grow. Our initiatives must deliver a win-win for local community investors, local enterprise and, of course, our environment.
 
Climate Change ImpactsThe impacts of climate change on the environment are significant and severe. The present scientific consensus is that the earth's climate is warming due to human activity, and the negative impacts of increased greenhouse gas emissions are measurable globally and nationally.[2]
 
Australia’s climate has warmed on average by 1.44 ± 0.24 °C since national records began in 1910, which has led to an increase in the frequency of extreme heat events.[3] The Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO reported that there has been an increase in extreme fire weather, and in the length of the fire season, across large parts of the country since the 1950s, as evidenced by the catastrophic bushfires in the summer of 2019/2020.  They also noted changes in rainfall, with decreases in the southeast and southwest of Australia as shown by the devastating drought in 2019.  Oceans around Australia they stated are acidifying and have warmed by about 1°C since 1910 bringing longer and more frequent marine heatwaves.  In the past 5 years there have been three major mass-bleaching events at the Great Barrier Reef resulting from these marine heatwaves, and resulting in the destruction in over half of the reef’s corals.[4]  The Great Barrier Reef has an economic, social and iconic asset value estimated at $56 billion, contributes around $6.4 billion annually to the Australian economy and supports over 64,000 jobs.[5]  Sea levels are also rising around Australia, increasing the risk of coastal inundation and damage to infrastructure and communities.2
 
The government is responsible for the environment, the health and wellbeing of its citizens, and the financial security of the nation. As we see the impact of increased carbon emissions, we also find evidence of the deleterious impact on Australian native wildlife, the Australian people and the wealth of the nation. 
 
Emission goals and carbon budgetsTo address the issue of dangerous climate change, Australia, along with 196 other parties, is a signatory to the Paris Agreement, which entered into force on 4 November 2016. The Paris Agreement aims to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change, by:
Holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, recognising that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change.[6]
In 2016 Australia emitted 1.2% of world greenhouse gas emissions. This made Australia the world’s 14th biggest emitter of greenhouse gas pollution, despite having just 0.3% of world population.  On a per capita basis. Australian emissions are the highest in the OECD and among the highest in the world. The only countries with higher per capita emissions than Australia are smaller petro-states like Kuwait, Qatar and UAE. [7] [8]
 
Australia has a very modest target to reduce emissions to 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2030.  However, Australia is projected to fall short of even this unexceptional target with only a 16.5% reduction by 2030.[9]
 
The IPCC report provides an estimate for a global remaining carbon budget of 580 GtCO2 (excluding permafrost feedbacks) based on a 50% probability of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees relative to 1850 to 1900 during and beyond this century and a remaining carbon budget of 420 GtCO2 for a 67% chance. [10]
 
Committed emissions from existing and proposed energy infrastructure represent more than the entire carbon budget that remains if mean warming is to be limited to 1.5 °C and perhaps two-thirds of the remaining carbon budget if mean warming is to be limited to less than 2 °C.  Estimates suggest that little or no new CO2-emitting infrastructure can be commissioned, and that existing infrastructure may need to be retired early (or be retrofitted with carbon capture and storage technology) in order to meet the Paris Agreement climate goals.[11]
From Jan 2017 until 2050 Australia’s remaining emission budget for a 50% chance of warming to stay below 1.5C warming relative to pre-industrial levels was estimated to be 5.5 GTCO2e.7  Adding the GHG emissions expended in 2017[12], 2018[13], and 2019[14], this leaves just 3.8 Gt CO2e remaining as at December 2019.  This leaves 6-7 years left at present emission rates of the 2013-2050 emission budget to stay below 1.5°C.  Therefore, at current emissions rates, Australia will have exceeded its carbon budget for 2050 by 2026.
 
Economic risksDeloitte Access Economics noted that some of the most significant risks to Australia’s economic growth trajectory are from the physical risks associated with a changing climate and the unplanned economic transition risk from the world’s response to this changing climate.16
Their analysis showed that the Australian industries hardest hit by the Covid 19 pandemic, would also be the most vulnerable to the effects of a warming world and climate change. Australia’s agriculture, construction, manufacturing, tourism related industries and mining sectors all featured consistently in the top industries exposed to the risks of covid, climate change and the unplanned economic transition as the world responds.  Deloitte Access Economics estimated that by 2055 Australia will experience economic losses on par with Covid 19.16
 
This BillCLEANaS supports the passing of this Climate Change bill.  This bill aims to ensure a clear and positive national response to the challenges of climate change through:
  • A Net Zero emissions target by 2050
  • Risk assessments and adaptation plans
  • Technology readiness assessments
  • An independent advisory body
 
The UK government introduced a similar bill 12 years ago and set targets and adopted policies to achieve those targets without significant political controversy.[15]  Their initial 80 % reduction by 2050 was later updated to net zero emissions by 2050 last year.  Similarly, they also have a climate change committee providing advice on how to proceed.
Australia’s Climate Politics have been toxic for a long time now with a lack of bipartisanship and aptly described as climate wars.  The degree of bipartisanship shown by both major parties in dealing with the Covid 19 crisis solving problems based on science is what is needed here through this bill.  Zali Steggal (Nov. 1 2020) recently said “No matter what your reason for coming to the debate on climate is, there is room for everyone to want action…It’s time to take the party politics out of this and move forward with a plan”.  CLEANaS considers that this bill can contribute to ending of the climate wars and take climate change out of Australian politics in a similar way to what happened in the UK.
 
Net Zero Emissions by 2050The IPCC stated that global emissions need to reach net zero by 2050 to be consistent to limiting warming to 1.5 °C.5  Long-emissions reduction commitments through an initial legislated target of Net Zero by 2050 combined with 5 yearly emissions plans and budgets as proposed in this bill will help ensure that Australia can play its part in keeping global warming within safe limits and fulfil its international obligations.  Furthermore, modelling has shown that moving towards a net zero emissions economy would unlock financial prospects in sectors including manufacturing and renewables triggering a $63 billion investment boom.[16]  Deloitte Access Economics estimates such a new growth recovery could grow Australia’s economy by $680 billion (present value terms) and increase GDP by 2.6% in 2070 – adding over 250,000 jobs to the Australian economy by 2070.[17]

Many of Australia’s trading partners have adopted net-zero targets, with 73 countries now having adopted net zero 2050 targets.17  Moreover, a national net zero 2050 target has strong support with 68% of Australians supporting such a move.[18] CLEANaS aligns itself with the 68% of Australians supporting a national net zero 2050 target.
 
All Australian states and territories have committed to a net-zero emissions target.[19]  For example, NSW Climate Change Policy Framework details the NSW Government’s objective to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.[20] This long-term objective “sets a clear statement of government’s intent, commitment and level of ambition and sets expectations about future emissions constraints that will help the private sector to plan and act.” The Policy Framework states that the NSW Government will investigate how to embed consideration of climate change mitigation and adaptation across government operations including service delivery, infrastructure, purchasing decisions and regulatory frameworks.  Furthermore, it states that Agencies will undertake additional policy investigation for sectors with significant opportunities and risks, including primary industries emissions and adaptation.
 
Similar to the UK Climate Change Act, the bill also includes continual adaptation planning with annual Risk assessments and 5-year adaptation plans as impacts of climate change are likely to materialise over time.
 
The bill also includes annual technology readiness assessments to advise the government on which technologies are ready to be implemented and which need more research, and potentially more funding and support to develop.
 
Climate Change CommissionAn essential part of the bill is the establishment of an independent advisory body (similar to the successful UK Committee on Climate Change) called the “Climate Change Commission”.  This bipartisan appointed body through a science led approach would monitor progress on emissions and climate resilience, conduct independent objective analysis, and advise the government on what solutions are required.  It would provide a level of transparency and legitimacy and facilitate more informed decision making on climate change.  The UK Committee on Climate Change is regarded as the “fulcrum” of the UK climate change architecture, independent, strong and trusted, the Climate Change Commission would hopefully follow in these footsteps.14
 
This Climate Change bill would enable Australia to catch up to the many other countries in the world on action on climate change.  It is important for Australia to join in with the rest of the world, particularly now as a Biden US presidency will change the world stage for significant action on climate change. This proposed legislation allows our government to step up quickly to these new challenges. CLEANaS considers that this Climate Change bill will assist Australia to catchup with the action on climate change undertaken by many other countries in the world.
 
Thank you for considering our submission,

Sincerely,
 
 
Alec Roberts
CLEANaS Chair on behalf of CLEANaS
 
 
 


[1] http://www.cleanas.org.au/

[2] NASA (n.d.) Scientific Consensus: Earth's Climate is Warming.  Retrieved from https://climate.nasa.gov/scientific-consensus/

[3] BOM (2020) State of the Climate 2020.  Retrieved from http://www.bom.gov.au/state-of-the-climate/

[4] Readfearn, G. (2020, April 7). Great Barrier Reef's third mass bleaching in five years the most widespread yet. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/07/great-barrier-reefs-third-mass-bleaching-in-five-years-the-most-widespread-ever

[5] Deloitte Access Economics (2017, June 23). At what price? The economic, social and icon value of the Great Barrier Reef. Retrieved from https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/the-value

[6] IPCC (2018). Global Warming of 1.5°C: An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.  Retrieved from https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/

[7] Swann, T. (2019, July). High Carbon from a Land Down Under:  Quantifying CO2 from Australia’s fossil fuel mining and exports. Retrieved from https://www.tai.org.au/sites/default/files/P667%20High%20Carbon%20from%20a%20Land%20Down%20Under%20%5BWEB%5D_0_0.pdf

[8] Ritchie, H. (2019, October 4). Where in the world do people emit the most CO2? Retrieved from https://ourworldindata.org/per-capita-co2

[9] Department of the Environment and Energy (2019, December) Australia’s emissions projections
2019.  Retrieved from https://www.industry.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-07/australias-emissions-projections-2019-report.pdf

[10] Meinshausen, M. (2019, March 19). Deriving a global 2013-2050 emission budget to stay below 1.5°C based on the IPCC Special Report on 1.5°C.  Retrieved from https://www.climatechange.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/421704/Deriving-a-1.5C-emissions-budget-for-Victoria.pdf

[11] Tong, D., Zhang, Q., Zheng, Y., Caldeira, K., Shearer, C., Hong, C., Qin, Y., & Davis, S. J. (2019). Committed emissions from existing energy infrastructure jeopardize 1.5 °C climate target. Nature, 572(7769), 373-377. https://doi-org.ezproxy.newcastle.edu.au/10.1038/s41586-019-1364-3

[12] Climate Council (2018) Australia’s Rising Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Retrieved from https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/CC_MVSA0143-Briefing-Paper-Australias-Rising-Emissions_V8-FA_Low-Res_Single-Pages3.pdf

[13] Cox, L. (2019, March 14). Australia's annual carbon emissions reach record high.  Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/mar/14/australias-annual-carbon-emissions-reach-record-high

[14] DISER (2020, May) National Greenhouse Gas Inventory: December 2019.  Retrieved from https://www.industry.gov.au/data-and-publications/national-greenhouse-gas-inventory-december-2019

[15] Fankhauser, S., Averchenkova, A. & Finnegan, J. (2018, March 10). 10 years of the UK Climate Change Act.  Retrieved from https://www.lse.ac.uk/GranthamInstitute/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/10-Years-of-the-UK-Climate-Change-Act_Fankhauser-et-al.pdf

[16] Cox, L. (2020, Oct 12). Net zero emissions target for Australia could launch $63bn investment boom.  Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/oct/12/net-zero-emissions-target-for-australia-could-launch-63bn-investment-boom

[17] Deloitte Access Economics (2020, November) A new choice: Australia’s climate for growth.  Retrieved from https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/au/Documents/Economics/deloitte-au-dae-new-choice-climate-growth-051120.pdf?nc=1

[18] TAI (2020) Climate of the Nation 2020 Tracking Australia’s attitudes towards climate change and energy.  Retrieved from https://www.tai.org.au/sites/default/files/Climate%20of%20the%20Nation%202020%20cover%20[WEB].pdf

[19] Climate Council (2020, July 9) NT puts Australia on track for net-zero climate target.  Retrieved from https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/nt-puts-australia-on-track-for-net-zero-climate-target/

[20] OEH (2018). NSW Climate Change Policy Framework. Retrieved from https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/-/media/OEH/Corporate-Site/Documents/Climate-change/nsw-climate-change-policy-framework-160618.pdf
 
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University of Newcastle goes 100% Renewable by 2020

14/12/2018

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University of Newcastle will receive 100% Renewable Electricity from the grid through a 7 year contract with Red Energy for their Newcastle and Central Coast campuses from 2020.  Red Energy, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Snowy Hydro.  The first year of the contract, 2019, will be a transition year while Red Energy gears up its solar, wind and hydro capacity.
 
This will complement the $4 million 2.0 megawatt system installation expected in 2019 which will see over 6000 panels installed across approximately 25 buildings at the Callaghan campus with additional panels also installed at the Ourimbah campus.

In 2016, CLEANaS in conjunction with the Tom Farrell Institute conducted a feasibility study on the Callaghan Campus going 100% renewable energy by 2020 as part of the Lighthouse Community Energy Project  funded by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage Growing Community Energy Program.  This determined that it is both technically feasible and financially beneficial to implement 100% renewable electricity.

Achievement of this goal by 2020 will place the University of Newcastle as a leader in Sustainability and Energy Management across the Australian tertiary sector; will stimulate research and teaching in renewable energy; and will drive new student enrolments across all Faculties with young people attracted to learn at the greenest and most innovative University in Australia. 
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Solar Gardens growing cheap electricity for renters

24/9/2018

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Published in the Newcastle Herald on 24 Sep 2018 as "Solar Gardens growing cheap electricity"

​By Tim Roberts and Alec Roberts, Chair of CLEANaS

A great way of reducing your power bill is by having solar PV on your roof.  With generous government subsidies, you can pay up front to install the solar panels or effectively lease them with zero dollars up-front finance available.  Either way, using electricity generated by the panels reduces what you use from the electricity grid and therefore your electricity bill.  In addition, when you do not use it this excess generation is exported to the electricity grid and you get a credit on your bill called a feed-in-tariff that further reduces your electricity bill.  The cost of electricity from the grid is greater than the cost from solar.  So, depending on when you use electricity, expect the savings to be 3-4 times the cost of the panels over their 25-year lifetime for a household.  If you have a business running normal office hours, the savings are even greater at potentially 5-6 times the initial cost of the panels. 

However, not all Australians can put solar on their roofs.  They may rent, live in apartments, or houses with rooftops that are shaded.  The people that are locked out of the benefits of rooftop solar often include those on low-incomes where a significant proportion of their daily costs are from the power they consume.
Solar gardens may provide a way for these Australians to access the benefits of solar to reduce their energy costs.  Solar gardens are the fastest growing sector of the solar industry in the US.  Solar gardens work by installing a large solar array (usually 99kW) close to electricity users (such as on a warehouse roof).  These users can buy or lease solar panels in the array and the electricity generated by the panels is credited to their energy bill reducing their energy costs.

Projects are currently underway to trial solar gardens across NSW, supported by funds from ARENA and the NSW government, to develop prototype solar gardens business models and identify barriers and potential solutions to implementing solar gardens in Australia. Thus providing a way for those locked out of the benefits of rooftop solar to reduce their energy costs through solar power.
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University of Newcastle Goes Solar!

16/2/2018

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By Alec Roberts CLEANaS and Tim Roberts TFI


​In 2017 the UON installed a 278 panel 75 kilowatt system atop the library building in Ourimbah. This system is equivalent to powering 19 homes, reducing carbon emissions equal to taking 37 cars off the road or planting and growing to maturity over 660 trees.

The Industry Development Centre (home of the Tom Farrell Institute) had 32 panels (approximately 8.6 kW) installed in late 2016. 

In 2016 the Tom Farrell Institute in conjunction with CLEANaS conducted a feasibility study on the Callaghan Campus going 100% renewable energy by 2020.  For more information...

The University of Newcastle is committed to a 20% reduction on CO2 emissions per meter square of gross floor area by 2020 from a 2007 baseline.   Through increased funding of on-site energy efficiency and renewable energy options together with the 2.0 MW system, the University is expecting to meet this commitment.


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    In the Media

    Solar gardens growing cheap electricity | Newcastle Herald 24 Sep 2018

    Lake Mac Is Living Smart
    - NBN News 22 Sep 2018

    ​University of Newcastle rolls out 2MW solar system at Callaghan Campus - RenewEconomy 

    University of Newcastle rolls out 2MW solar system at Callaghan Campus - One Step Off The Grid 27 Feb 2018  

    University of Newcastle goes solar - Bradman Recruitment Group 26 Feb 2018

    University of Newcastle goes solar - Goondiwindi Argus 25 February 2018

    Shining light: University of Newcastle goes solar - 
    ​Newcastle Herald 26 February 2018

    Community Energy, where communities take renewable energy into their own hands - The Hunter Business Review 18 September 2017


    Success of community energy a win for the world - Newcastle Herald 3 July 2017

    Renewable energy island a community triumph - Newcastle Herald 15 May 2017

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    Sun Shines on the Wetlands - Newcastle Herald November 2016

    The Wetlander Volume 31 Issue 2 November 2016

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    Hunter Wetlands Solar goes live - Newcastle Herald 16 November 2015

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    The Wetlander Volume 30 Issue 2 November 2015 
     
    Tech firms plan to connect - Newcastle Herald 29 June 2015

    Hunter Wetlands To Go Solar - Hunter Headline 19 June 2015

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    Kooragang wind turbine sold to Tasmanian poultry farm - Newcastle Herald 15 August 2014

    Kooragang wind turbine could be saved to power surf clubs - RenewEconomy 14 July 2014

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    ​
    Media Releases

    ​Wetlands celebrates 30th Anniversary - Hunter Wetlands Centre 28 October 2015

    Hunter Wetlands Goes Solar - Hunter Wetlands Centre 1 July 2015

    Submissions

    ​​RET Review - Published Submissions

    CLEANaS Submission to the CAMAC in response to the discussion paper on Crowd Sourced Equity Funding

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