David Suzuki hasn’t minced words about the new Australian government’s approach to climate change and renewable energy.
“What the hell kind of government is it that comes into office and the first symbolic act is to shut down a source of information?” Professor Suzuki said of the move to ditch the Climate Commission and the Climate Change Authority (CCA).
“Why do we not object to paying for putting garbage into landfill, but we shout like mad when we put a price on putting carbon into the atmosphere?”
The carbon tax has little impact on the average Australian, who receives compensation for any effects under the Household Assistance Package.
Earlier this month, Professor Suzuki said the Australian government is too strongly influenced by the mining sector and that the carbon tax was essential to developing our renewable energy industry.
“Australians have something that Canadians will kill for, that is sunlight,” he said in an interview with Lara Shannon.
“Australia should be leading the world with something that has so much dependence, not just capturing that sunlight but manufacturing the products to exploit that sunlight. I think Australia is so tied to the fossil fuel industry it is missing a massive opportunity.”
Another body in the Abbott government’s crosshairs is the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC); which the new Minister for Environment, Greg Hunt, has described as a “giant green hedge fund“.
The CEFC’s mission is to “overcome capital market barriers that hinder the financing, commercialisation and deployment of renewable energy, energy efficiency and low emissions technologies.” It doesn’t provide grants – its goal is to make a positive return on its investments.
An example of an initiative involving the CEFC is the Energy Efficient Loan for enterprise; which includes commercial solar systems.
Legal advice taken from Stephen Keim, SC (PDF) by the Australian Conservation Foundation indicates the Coalition government’s moves to prevent the CEFC from spending any more of the $10 billion allocated to it may be illegal.
“The CEFC’s activities cannot be terminated by executive action. Although the responsible and nominated minister(s) are given certain administrative roles by the CEFC Act, these are, for the most part, essentially supervisory clerical in nature.”
