Climate Change and Energy Policy Summary

Real action to rescue the future

Australians are the highest per capita producers of greenhouse gas emissions in the world and the biggest exporters of coal. The NSW coal industry is rapidly expanding and consumption of energy is growing dramatically.

The profligate use of fossil fuels is having unacceptable consequences on the global climate, with unpredictable impacts on rainfall, food supply and human health and safety.

The Greens are committed to a rapid transformation of NSW’s energy industry to low emission renewable energy options such as solar and wind power, energy efficiency and conservation measures. The transition away from coal will incur some costs that must be equitably shared
but the change will create economic opportunities and large scale employment growth.

The Greens believe that with appropriate policies New South Wales can become a world leader in the development and application of sustainable energy technologies.

We reject nuclear power and so-called “clean coal” options such as carbon capture and storage (geo-sequestration) as dangerous, limited, expensive and high risk technologies that will take too long to be commercially viable options for reducing emissions.

The Greens are committed to:

• substantial and immediate reductions in NSW’s greenhouse emissions,  leading to at least 80% reduction (based on 1990 levels) by 2050;
• stopping the building of coal fired power stations and the expansion of coal mining, and “just transitions” funding for coal-dependent communities to develop low carbon economies;
• renewable energy targets of 20% of all energy generated by 2012 and 50% by 2020, and an industry development policy to create large numbers of high quality jobs in NSW;
• rapid reductions in greenhouse gas emissions using wind energy, crop wastes and solar heating (including solar hot water) with natural gas as a transition fuel;
• reduce total energy consumption by 10% by 2011 and by 15% by 2015 using mandatory energy efficiency standards;
• supporting a distributed electricity industry, including widespread use of  rooftop solar panels and increased community-level control; and
• carbon pricing, preferably as a carbon tax where the polluters pay or, as a second best option, as a well designed carbon trading scheme.