Page 4113 - Week 12 - Thursday, 1 December 2022
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In its 10th year of operation, the Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act 2010 was reviewed. The review found that the act had been highly effective in allowing the ACT government to set the groundwork for action, develop policy and successfully meet emissions reduction and renewable energy targets.
The review provided recommendations for the act to continue to drive effective action to meet the government’s climate objectives and promote greater transparency, accountability and evidence‐based policy decisions. This led to the formulation of the Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act Amendment Bill 2022, which was presented to the Assembly in June this year and passed through the Assembly yesterday.
The report includes our annual reporting of progress in implementing the Zero Emissions Government Framework. The framework commits the government to achieving zero emissions in its own operations by 2040, five years earlier than the community as a whole, and to reducing emissions by 33 per cent from 2020 levels by 2025.
In 2021‐22 we have focused on reducing emissions from gas and transport in order for agencies to transition to zero emissions operations. The government completed a large gas asset audit of government facilities. This audit provided asset condition data and recommendations for all electric replacement options. We ensured that the 74 new passenger vehicle leases, where there is a fit-for-purpose vehicle, were 100 per cent zero emissions vehicles; we provided zero-interest loans to ACT government agencies to support emissions reductions projects; and made funding available through the Social Cost of Carbon Fund for emissions reductions projects.
I will now turn to the effectiveness of government actions, as required by the act. The ACT Greenhouse Gas Inventory showcases the impact of our actions. It shows that, in 2021-22, the ACT emitted 1,647 kilotonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. This was 47 per cent lower than our 1990 baseline level of emissions. Per capita emissions were 3.6 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2021‐22, representing a 62 per cent reduction from 1989-90 levels.
The COVID lockdown period in August 2021 is likely to have reduced transport emissions, and it is worth noting that emissions could increase in 2022‐23 as travel returns to normal.
Emissions from the ACT government’s own operations were 63,850 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
The ACT government committed to deliver 100 per cent renewable electricity for the territory from 2020 under the Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act 2010. For the third financial year, the ACT government successfully met its target to source 100 per cent of the territory’s electricity from renewable sources. This means voluntarily surrendering 2,224,349 large‐scale generation certificates, or LGCs, to the Clean Energy Regulator on behalf of all ACT electricity users.
As required by the act and reflecting community interest, I now turn to the cost-of-living impact statement in the report. The Energy Efficiency Improvement
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