Australian Senators Back Coal – Kill Cap & Trade

Per the BBC News: Backed by the huge coal industry, the Australian Senate defeated a government bill to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5% over the next 10 years.

The coal coalition said the scheme would delay economic recovery and lead to job losses. Australia has the highest per capita emissions in the developed world and coal is its biggest export.

Under the plan, due to be introduced in July 2011, a one-year fixed price period would be introduced for the first year, with carbon permits costing A$10 ($7, £5) per tonne, followed by a floating price until July 2013.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd had earlier said that the range of the emissions reduction target could be increased up to 25% of 2000 levels if other nations agreed similar targets.

The previous target was to reduce emissions by between 5% and 15% of 2000 levels by 2020.

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong confirmed after the Senate defeat by 42 votes to 30 that the government would seek to do this. If the government is defeated again however, it could trigger a general election.

UPDATE:
Canberra, Australia

Australia’s upper house has passed a climate change bill, effectively mandating a renewable portfolio standard that should establish a 20% contribution to electricity production from renewable sources by 2020.

“The RET legislation will be the foundation of clean energy policy in Australia for the next decade.”

– Matthew Warren, Chief Executive, Australia’s Clean Energy Council

The passage of the Rudd government-backed bill through the Senate came just days after parliament had rejected a separate, even more ambitious, climate change bill based on emissions trading. Nonetheless, the bill quadruples the renewable energy target set by the previous government in 2001.

However, the bill passed only after the government reached a deal with the main opposition party to increase government assistance to energy intensive industries, notably aluminum production, and coal mining.

Consequently, the government will provide partial exemptions to all activities that would qualify for the emission-intensive trade-exposed assistance scheme under the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme of 90% and 60% of the 9500 gigawatt-hours (GWh) set under the existing Mandatory Renewable Energy Target, depending on the emissions intensity of the activity. The government has also agreed that the transitional arrangements will be subject to the recommendations of a review in 2014.

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Filed under: Climate Change