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The Rudd Government’s green paper released today lets the Iemma Government off the hook for its reactive response to energy efficiency and climate change, Shadow Minister for Energy Mike Baird said today.
“It is positive that the green paper incorporates strategies to ease the pressure on families dealing with rising costs in a carbon-constrained economy – we endorse that from beginning to end,” Mr Baird said.
“However, in a strange twist of irony, the concessions that will be granted to electricity generators in effect reward the Iemma Government for being slow to act on climate change and energy efficiency.
“The Iemma Government has not prepared the State’s coal-fired generators for carbon trading. They could have begun retrofitting many years ago with carbon scrubbers, which have substantially reduced greenhouse gas emissions across the United States.
“If they had pursued energy efficiency to the full, such as in California where energy consumption has remained stable over the past 25 years, there would potentially not be the need to build a new generator.
“There is no coincidence that the only meaningful energy efficiency initiatives from the Iemma Government were released last month.
“Keeping energy consumption high obviously boosts the sale price of the electricity assets, which have clearly been on the sale block for many years.
“A trial of smart meters by Country Energy that began in 2004 cut household energy consumption by 10%. However, for reasons only the Iemma Government can explain, this technology is yet to be implemented across the State.
“The sense is that the Iemma Government is being rewarded for its poor management and lack of environmental leadership.”
MEDIA: Lisa Harrington - 0406 726 880
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