Timeline announced for development of Australian Emissions Trading Scheme
In a press release today (PDF) the Australian Minister for Climate Change, Penny Wong, announced the draft timetable for the adoption of an Australian national emissions trading scheme.
The timetable includes four phases of consultation on key design and implementation issues.
- March to June 2008 Phase 1 consultation with stakeholders to inform the development of the Green Paper, including:
- ongoing consultation with states and territories through the Council of Australian Governments;
- roundtable discussions with peak industry and non-government organisations, with inaugural meetings held on 3 March;
- consultation with the agriculture and forestry sectors on the question of their inclusion in the emissions trading scheme and on the timeframe for that inclusion; and
- targeted consultations on technical design issues.
- July 2008 Public release of the Green Paper on scheme design
- July to September 2008 Phase 2 consultation on the Green Paper
- December 2008 Public release of exposure draft of legislative package
- December 2008 to February 2009 Phase 3 consultation on exposure draft legislation package
- End 2008 Firm indication by Government of planned medium-term trajectory for the scheme
- March 2009 Bill introduced into Parliament
- Mid-2009 Government aims to achieve passage of bill by Parliament at this time
- During 2009 Phase 4 consultation on emissions trading regulations
- 3rd quarter 2009 Act enters into force; scheme regulator established
- 2010 Emissions trading scheme will commence
Consultation has begun with the convening of two roundtables involving peak industry and other non-government organisations in early March. Senator Wong and the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Tony Burke, will begin discussions with agriculture sector leaders soon.
“The roundtables are part of a larger process for listening to the Australian community’s views as we work on design of the scheme,” Senator Wong said.
The [proposed] Green Paper will canvass options and preferred approaches on issues, such as which industry sectors will be covered and how emission caps will be set. It will also include ways to address the impacts of emissions trading on Australian households, emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries and other strongly affected sectors.
The design of emissions trading will also be informed by economic modelling work being undertaken by the Australian Treasury, the work of the Garnaut Review, and the work done to date at the Federal, State and Territory levels.
Emissions trading is central to achieving the Government’s goal of reducing Australia’s greenhouse emissions by 60 per cent by 2050.
Professor Garnaut’s report is urging for a reduction in harmful greenhouse gas emissions by 90% however and one hopes that in the course of this timetable his opinion will be reinforced and not sidelined by vested industry interests. — DS
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