“The future of some of the industries seeking exemptions from renewable energy responsibilities depends on growing clean energy sources in Australia, but their exemption shouldn’t stop the legislation going through and driving growth in clean energy jobs and investment,” said John Connor, CEO Climate Institute today.  

Exemption for these industries is a triumph for short term thinking and will them push higher responsibilities onto other industries and consumers, but by itself won’t reduce the total amount of renewable energy resulting from this scheme.

It is now time politicians of all colours stopped arguing about climate policies like the renewable energy target and Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme and allowed investment in clean energy and other low carbon jobs and industries to flow.”

It is our view that both the CPRS and the renewable energy legislation should be passed as soon as possible”

The Climate Institute would support removal of the exemption for the big polluters exemption in the Senate but also urges the Government not to block amended renewable energy legislation should the CPRS be deferred and the previously stated exemption be put in place.”

The Climate Institute is also concerned at solar and heat pump hot water systems achieving renewable energy credits under the proposed scheme and the potential for these, and ‘phantom credits’ for solar photovoltaic systems, to cannibalise the intent of the legislation which is to drive significant and new renewable energy into our energy supply system.

The Climate Institute recently released a report demonstrating that business proposals awaiting both the renewable energy target and carbon pollution reduction scheme would create tens of thousands of clean energy jobs and over 30 billion dollars of investment