Page 4376 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 25 October 2017
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and more sustainable fuels, pursuant to reducing overall net emissions by 2050 at the latest, in line with the Carbon Neutral ACT Government Framework; and
(f) explore mechanisms to encourage the take up of private electric vehicles in the ACT, including best practice regulatory responses.
I am very pleased to bring forward this motion before the Assembly this evening. Since the government’s re-election in October, we have been working hard to deliver on our election commitments and continuing our responsible steps to manage climate change and our environment. We are delivering 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2020. We are leading the nation and making sure that Canberra remains one of the most livable and sustainable cities in the world.
We are leading when others have been lacking leadership on climate change. There are those seeking to reverse the transition to renewable energy and who are attempting to pull coal out of the swamp from which it came. That is why, more than ever, we in this Assembly need to continue to support the ACT government’s leading role in renewable energy and continue to take responsible steps to support the transition to renewables, including harnessing innovations and the power of battery technology.
In the lead-up to last year’s election, ACT Labor made a commitment to continue to build an even more sustainable city and to work towards carbon neutrality. We are presently on track to reach 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2020. Earlier this year, in April, the Ararat Wind Farm began operating at full capacity, providing renewable electricity to the grid to power 37,000 homes in Canberra. Just a couple of weeks ago we saw the completion of Canberra’s solar highway, with 36,000 solar panels added to Williamsdale Solar Farm. Canberra’s solar highway incorporates three other solar farms and will generate 85,000 megawatt hours of electricity every year, powering 11,000 homes across our territory.
By building a more sustainable territory we will spur investment, innovation and the creation of new industries and jobs in the clean energy sector. We have already seen a 400 per cent increase in local renewable energy jobs between 2010 and 2015. This is in the context where national jobs in the sector have been in decline. So we only need to imagine what we can achieve as we continue our further investment in the renewable energy sector.
We must acknowledge that the government is not acting alone. Whilst the ACT government has a direct role to play, we must also acknowledge the importance of individual Canberrans and businesses in delivering a more sustainable Canberra through the homes that they live in and the vehicles and transport that they use every day. This motion supports the rollout of battery storage in households and businesses in the ACT, and the harnessing of these technologies and the opportunities that they offer as we transition to renewable energy.
Traditionally the national electricity market has been designed to operate with conventional forms of electricity generation, such as coal, gas and hydro. However, the market is undergoing the most significant transformation since its inception, with
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