Archived material from historical editions of The Generator
David Headberry, representing the Major Energy Users, asked the the Australian Energy Market Commission: "Where is the lack of investment that needs encouraging by all of these rule changes?" One of the high-level (NEM) principles was to encourage investment, he said. "Do you know what the key driver investment is? It’s money. So what we Continue Reading →
“The AGO (Australian Greenhouse Office) started out with a lot of promise,” recalls one former staffer, who now works in industry and asked to remain anonymous, The Age reports (28/10/2006, p.5).
Doubting Thomases in Govt: “We all knew there were some doubting Thomases within the Government (about climate change) but we thought that, as the science evolved, people would become more informed about the issues.
Initial optimism undermined: "Its first chief executive, Gwen Andrews, was initially optimistic but says its work was gradually undermined by inter-departmental rivalry, poor governance structures and a patchy commitment to greenhouse policy.
Writing on the wall when senator left: “The strongest card the office had to play was the support and leadership of Senator Robert Hill, and when he left … the writing was on the wall,” says Andrews, who left in 2002 to run a council in the UK.
Has not spent more than one third of budget: Department figures show that the office has not spent more than a third of its budget for global warming projects.
Govt not serious about global warming, says Labor: “In the eight years since it was established, the Australian Greenhouse Office underspend has been $362 million,” Labor’s public accountability spokesman, Kelvin Thomson, told Parliament this month. “So much for this Government’s commitment to seriously tackling global warming.”
Subsumed into Dept of Environment and Heritage: In late 2004, the AGO was subsumed into the Department of Environment and Heritage. “There was an incredible momentum early on but that’s all gone, along with most of the staff from those days,” said the former AGO staffer.
Govt says unspent money put towards GHG abatement: Environment Minister Campbell says all the unspent money was put towards greenhouse gas abatement.
Govt may have to work on image: Rejecting claims that the Government has failed to act on climate change, Campbell concedes the Government may have to work on its image, saying he is frustrated by the lack of media interest in “good news” stories about how the Government is tackling climate change.
Govt claims to be world leader in combating climate change: “Very few Australians know the Australian Government is a world leader in combating climate change,” Campbell says.
Lacking good communications strategy: “What’s lacking, to be frank, is a good communications strategy to let people know what we we doing … The day the Prime Minister announced Adelaide had won the first solar city there was very little media interest.”
Aust GHG emissions small on world scale but most polluting per person: While Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions are small on a global scale, contributing around 1.4 per cent of international emissions, per person we remain the most greenhouse polluting people on the planet, largely because of our huge energy sector.
Reduction in land clearing helped limit emissions: Between 1990 and 2004 net emissions rose by only 2.3 per cent. But in the long term, limiting emissions will be a struggle, kept lower by one-off benefits such as stopping widespread land clearing in the late 1990s.
Benefit wiped out by increased emissions from energy sector: That temporary benefit has virtually been wiped out by a 43 per cent jump in emissions from the energy sector, Australia’s biggest source of greenhouse gases, mainly from electricity generation.
Voluntary programs still to deliver any deep emissions cuts: Voluntary programs to “encourage” big power generators to cut their emissions are yet to deliver any deep emission cuts.
The Age, 28/10/2006, p. 5
Source: Erisk Net
Action taken in the next 10 or 20 years could have a profound effect on the climate in the second half of this century and into the 22nd century, Sir Nicholas Stern, head of the United Kingdom Government Economic Service, said in his final report on the economics of climate change.
Long lead time: Stern, the former chief economist of the World Bank, said there were long lead time in the effects of actions taken now , with only a limited effect on climate over the next 40 or 50 years.
Scientific evidence overwhelming: His report said the scientific evidence was now overwhelming: climate change presented very serious global risks, and it demanded an urgent global response.
Prediction of future paths: The scientific evidence on the causes and future paths of climate change was strengthening all the time. In particular, scientists could now attach probabilities to the temperature outcomes and impacts on the natural environment associated with different levels of stabilisation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
More greenhouse gases in atmosphere: The report said stocks of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxides and a number of gases that arise from industrial processes) were rising, as a result of human activity.
Current level 430ppm of CO2e: The current level or stock of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere was equivalent to around 430 parts per million (ppm) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), compared with only 280ppm before the Industrial Revolution.
World already warmer by 0.5 degree Celsius: These concentrations had already caused the world to warm by more than half a degree Celsius and would lead to at least a further half degree warming over the next few decades, because of the inertia in the climate system.
550ppm CO2e by 2050 if flow of emissions stabilises: Even if the annual flow of emissions did not increase beyond today’s rate, the stock of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would reach double pre-industrial levels by 2050 – 550ppm CO2e – and would continue growing thereafter.
Flow of emissions accelerating: But the annual flow of emissions was accelerating, as fast-growing economies invested in high carbon infrastructure and as demand for energy and transport increases around the world.
550ppm level of CO2e could be reached by 2035: The level of 550ppm CO2e could be reached as early as 2035. At this level there was at least a 77 per cent chance – and perhaps up to a 99 per cent chance, depending on the climate model used – of a global average temperature rise exceeding 2 degrees Celsius.
Reference: “Stern Review on the economics of climate change final report” by Sir Nicholas Stern, head of the Government Economic Service and former World Bank chief economist. 30 October 2006. Address: HM Treasury, 1 Horse Guards Road, London. SW1A 2HQ. Phone: (from outside UK) +44 (0)20 7270 4558. Fax: 020 7270 4861.
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk
Erisk Net, 1/11/2006
More than half of Sydney’s biggest business water users have increased their consumption in the past three years, amid growing alarm about dwindling supplies, reported The Daily Telegraph (30/10/2006, p.10).
No let-up at big users: While residential users had slashed consumption by about 12 per cent, 13 of the city’s 25 largest commercial, industrial and public sector users consumed more water last financial year than in 2002-03, the daily said.
5pc rise by top customer: The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, showed a 5 per cent increase by Sydney Water’s unnamed biggest customer.
Names stay confidential: Neither Sydney Water nor Water Utilities Minister David Campbell planned to name the commercial water wasters, arguing it would breach their right to confidentiality about their operations.
The Daily Telegraph, 30/10/2006, p.10
Source: Erisk Net
Installing a pool during a record-breaking drought does not come without a certain degree of conscience-pricking, reported The Age (28/10/2006, p.4).
Pool comes with sacrifice: Among the 5000 Victorian homeowners who installed a pool in the past 12 months, the Brown family of East Malvern found they would not be able to fill their 60,000-litre pool until they had proved to Yarra Water that they were worthy by cutting back on water consumption around the home.
Must be offset by savings: Under stage two water restrictions, home owners wanting to fill a pool of more than 2000-litre capacity must have a water conservation plan approved by their water company. The plan must show that the water going into the pool will be offset by water savings.
Home water inventory: For the Browns, that meant installing a AAA-rated shower head, a rain sensor for their watering system and spreading mulch around the garden. Other ideas included installing a rainwater tank or a greywater system.
More plunge in amid crisis: Despite the water crisis, pool construction continues unabated. Industry figures show that 5000 new pools are built each year. Environment groups are angry that in the present drought, the water to fill them comes so cheap.
Luxury comes cheap: The Browns will pay $93 to fill their pool. Water costs 81 cents per 1000 litres if you use less than 440 litres a day. If you use more than 880 litres a day, it rises to $1.55 per 1000 litres.
Pool owners pay "top dollar": Luke Enright, spokesman for water retailer Southeast Water, defended the cost of water, saying pool owners paid more for bulk water. “These people who want to fill the pool have to pay the top dollar to fill their pool,” he said. “We don’t want to deny people the right to have a swimming pool.”
Southeast Water did random checks on pool owners to make sure they had installed the water saving devices promised.
Jealousy adds to overcaution: The Swimming Pool and Spa Association argues that pools across Melbourne take just 0.03 per cent of Melbourne’s 620.5 billion litres annual water consumption. President Ted Martin said people were becoming “overcautious with water” and that critics’ responses were linked to jealousy.
The Age, 28/10/2006, p. 4
Source: Erisk Net
Drought is threatening to wipe more than $6 billion from the value of farm production this year as wheat farmers face their smallest harvest in a decade, The Canberra Times (28/10./06, p.1) reports.
Blow to economic growth: The forecast came as Prime Minister John Howard visited the parched Riverina food bowl where there was neither crops nor stock in sight. And while the bush is doing it tough, the wider community won’t escape the effects of the big dry, which may deal a significant blow to Australia’s economic growth.
Month-old forecasts revised: The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) is revising forecasts made only a month ago – an indication of the dire nature of the drought, which many predict could be the worst ever. Grains Council of Australia chairman Murray Jones said the change in conditions has been dramatic. “The drought has developed into a very serious one, over the last few weeks it has deteriorated quite dramatically,” Mr Jones told ABC Television.
Grains all down: Australia’s primary crop, wheat, will have its worst year since 1994-95, with production forecast to fall to 9.5 million tonnes, down from 25 million tonnes in 2005-06. Barley production will plummet 64 per cent to 3.6 million tonnes, while canola will drop 69 per cent to 440,000 tonnes.
Slump in cattle, sheep: Graziers are having a tough time, too. The value of beef production is expected to fall by 13 per cent to $6.6 billion, reflecting a 13 per cent slump in cattle prices, as demand drops and as more stock is sent for slaughter. For similar reasons, the value of sheep meat production is also seen dropping 35 per cent to $1.4 billion.
Total farm production down 35pc: Across the agricultural industry, the value of farm production is expected to slump a massive 35 per cent to $6.2 billion. And that will take a heavy toll on national production.
Knock-on effect elsewhere: ABARE predicts it will slice 0.7 of a percentage point from Australia’s current annual growth rate of 1.9 per cent. ABARE’s chief commodity analyst, Terry Sheales, said the impact on growth would be quite significant. “It just … goes to show that agriculture remains an important part of the Australian economy,” he said. “What happens in agriculture will have knock-on effects in the rest of the economy.”
The Canberra Times, 28/10/2006, p. 1
Source: Erisk Net