The Dirty Dozen: Australia’s largest gas and coal companies could keep polluting under Government plans released today.

Gas and coal companies could be given a get out of jail free card to keep polluting in Australia, unless the Federal Government enforces much tighter restrictions on climate emissions than the proposed reforms of the Safeguard Mechanism released today.

Solutions for Climate Australia director Dr Barry Traill acknowledged the work of the Albanese Government and Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen on climate policy to date, but said the Safeguard Mechanism needed to do much more to genuinely bring down Australia’s climate emissions.

“Minister Bowen has been exceptionally focussed in pursuing changes in how Australia deals proactively with climate change.

“The Government committed to using this reform to finally regulate the fossil fuel industry to bring down their climate emissions, but unfortunately we’re seeing loopholes you could drive a coal truck through.

“The biggest problem in the draft regulations released today is that they would allow the fossil fuel industry to keep putting the same amount or more pollution into the air and then purchase unfettered amounts of carbon offsets through activities such as tree planting to cover for it.  

“Carbon offsets, also called carbon credits, were designed to be a small part of our emissions reduction plan - they should be a last resort when pollution genuinely cannot be directly reduced through changing practices or new technology.  

“Carbon offsets should never be a system that assists the fossil fuel industry to keep polluting.

“It’s like letting a multi-national gas company knock your house down on a promise that they will start building another one which will be ready in a few decades’ time somewhere else. Will they do it? Will it be the same quality? Will it be in a bushfire zone? The priority is to not knock the house down in the first place.

“These huge fossil fuel companies are making record profits digging Australian coal and gas out of the ground, all while seeking to use carbon offsets to dodge their responsibilities to reduce emissions. 

“We simply can’t trust coal and gas companies like Woodside, Santos and Chevron with unfettered access to carbon offsets.  

"The Albanese government was elected with a mandate to reduce Australia's climate emissions by at least 43 percent by 2030, and a strong Safeguard Mechanism is critical to achieving that,” Dr Traill said.

Reform to ratchet down the climate emissions of the major polluters is long overdue; the Safeguard Mechanism was put in place under previous Coalition Governments, but with ‘targets’ that actually allowed major polluters to increase their climate pollution. 

“Currently a ‘Dirty Dozen’ of large fossil fuel companies and the other largest climate polluters in Australia have no real restrictions on the amount of pollution they can release.  

In December, forty-eight climate change advocacy organisations wrote to the CEOs of the 12 most polluting gas and coal companies asking them to support strengthened reform of the Safeguard Mechanism, including a call to stop unfettered use of carbon offsets.

Solutions for Climate Australia will continue to call on the largest fossil fuel companies to directly cut climate pollution. To deliver that, a rigorous Safeguard Mechanism must ensure fossil fuel companies directly reduce their pollution.  

"Communities around the country are doing a heavy lift on climate by installing solar at record rates and signing up for green power. It's time for polluters to pull their weight," said Dr Traill.

Media contact:
Director of Solutions for Climate Australia Dr Barry Traill: 0448 793 334. 

Deputy Director of Solutions for Climate Australia Sophia Walter: 0476 260 028.

Background information:

Safeguard Mechanism: The Federal Government is currently undertaking reform of the Safeguard Mechanism, which is due to be introduced by July this year. This is potentially the most significant reform to Australia’s climate policy this term of government because, if operating as it should, it would  apply a cap on the emissions of Australia’s most polluting facilities, one that tightens over time.
Background on the Safeguard Mechanism: https://www.solutionsforaustralia.net/news/safeguard-mechanism 

Carbon offset: an action intended to compensate for the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as a result of industrial or other human activity. Examples include reforestation or reducing emissions-intensive bushfires.
More information: https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/carbon-offsetting-worthwhile/