Environment and Planning 5 Minute Fix 16: climate change, energy, resources, sustainable development and biodiversity

Commonwealth: Committee report on Steggall's climate change adaptation and mitigation bills

The House of Representatives Standing Committee on the Environment and Energy has released its Report on the Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) Bill 2020 and Climate Change (National Framework for Adaptation and Mitigation) (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2020 which were introduced into Federal Parliament as private member's Bills by Independent Zali Steggall on 9 November 2020.

The primary Bill proposed to set a goal of achieving net-zero emissions in Australia by 31 December 2050 and, including the following key elements:

• setting emissions reduction budgets and implementing emission reduction plans for each budget period;
• the completion of a national climate change risk assessment;
• the preparation of a national adaptation plan in response to each risk assessment; and
• the establishment of an independent Climate Change Commission (CCC).

Ultimately, the Committee recommended that the Bills not be passed and in its Report the Committee identified the following deficiencies in the proposed Bills:

• the proposed CCC would steer formal policy decisions to an unelected body, away from the Parliament and the Executive;
• the proposed CCC would also reproduce work already undertaken within the federal bureaucracy; and
• the proposed requirement to reach net zero emissions by 2050 by legislative force without addressing how this was to be achieved, would create risks including adverse impacts on specific sectors, jobs and the economy.

Following the Committee's Report, the recommendation of Independent MP Steggall and Labor that the Bills be debated in Parliament failed and the Bills will no longer be proceeding.

Commonwealth: Carry forward of excess carbon credits surrendered under NGERs

On 13 July 2021, the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Safeguard Mechanism) Amendment (Prescribed Production Variables Update) Rule 2021 was made by the Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction to amend the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (Safeguard Mechanism) Rule 2015 to, include:

• additional prescribed production variables and corresponding default emissions intensity values into Schedule 2;
• default emissions intensity values that were not available for some prescribed production variables published in October 2020;
• measures to simplify and clarify the administration of the Safeguard Mechanism; and
• minor technical corrections to prescribed production variables set in the Rule in 2020.

The Rule also allows Australian Carbon Credit Units which have previously been surrendered in excess to be used by a person in relation to a facility to avoid an excess emission situation in future periods until 30 June 2030.

Commonwealth: Emissions Reduction Fund 2022 priorities open for consultation

The Federal Government is currently seeking stakeholder ideas to help identify activities which could be developed into new Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) methods for 2022, in particular methods that would support the priority technologies identified in the 1st Low Emissions Technology Statement or support low emissions transport infrastructure, such as electric or hydrogen vehicle refuelling infrastructure.

This consultation process implements the recommendation in the Report of the Expert Panel examining additional sources of low cost abatement (the King Review) that there be a new process to provide third parties with the opportunity to propose and prepare ERF methods to encourage innovation and accelerate method development.

The current ERF method development priorities which are to be delivered by the end of 2021 include carbon capture and storage, soil carbon, bio methane or green gas, plantation forestry and blue carbon.

Submissions on the 2022 priorities must be made by Thursday, 26 August 2021.

VIC: Climate change Adaptation Action Plans out for consultation

The Victorian Government has released a set of "Adaption Action Plans" across a variety of sectors in order to develop a strategy to enhance the State's resilience in areas vulnerable to climate change. The sectors or areas covered by the Adaptation Action Plans include:

• Primary Production;
• Built Environment;
• Education and training;
• Health and Human Services;
• Transport;
• Natural Environment; and
• Water Cycle.

The Plans are guided by Victoria's Climate Strategy released earlier this year and are now open for public comment.

It is expected that the Adaption Action Plans will be updated every five years and will complement six Regional Adaption Strategies which the Victorian Government is yet to release.

VIC: Transitioning to a zero emissions economy by 2050 – have your say

The Victorian Government has released an interim report Towards 2050: Gas infrastructure in a zero emissions economy which discusses the future of natural gas infrastructure as the state progresses towards a zero emissions economy by 2050.

The interim report examines the following four scenarios in which natural gas is replaced by either one or a combination of alternative energy sources to achieve the zero emissions economy by 2050:

• Scenario A: Zero emissions electrification – no natural gas
• Scenario B: Net zero emissions electrification supported by natural gas
• Scenario C: Zero emissions hydrogen with biogas and electrification
• Scenario D: Net zero emissions hydrogen with biogas and electrification

The interim report also explores the associated cost of decommissioning natural gas infrastructure and the construction of infrastructure to support new sources of energy production as well as changes to Victoria's legislative regime governing natural gas production and use in the State in order to facilitate a transition from the resource.

It is understood that following consultation, a final report will be prepared by no later than December 2021. Submissions on the interim report can be made until 5pm on Monday, 16 August 2021.

QLD: Government releases Climate Action Plan 2030

The Queensland Government has released its Climate Action Plan 2030 to provide the roadmap to reach the following emissions and renewables targets:

• 50% renewable energy target by 2030;
• 30% emissions reduction below 2005 levels by 2030; and
• zero net emissions by 2050.

The Plan discusses the investments and action that the Government has already undertaken and the key priorities across the electricity, transport, agriculture, buildings and land sectors to achieve the 2030 targets.

A key element of the Plan is climate adaptation, the framework for which is set out in the Queensland Climate Adaptation Strategy 2017–2030 which was released in 2017.

A survey can be completed to have your say on the Climate Action Plan 2030.

NSW: Statement on the future of gas exploration, production and supply in NSW released

The NSW Government has released its Future of Gas Statement, which outlines plans for the gas industry in NSW and identifies where gas exploration and production will and will not occur within the State. The plan of action as set out in the Statement is to:

• improve certainty about future gas production and exploration;
• enable downstream users to access gas to unlock economic benefits;
• use gas for firming capacity where it is the most economic option to ensure reliability; and
• enable gas-related infrastructure.

The NSW Government has stated that it will:

• not release further areas for gas exploration in NSW, including areas in the Far West of NSW, near Wilcannia and Broken Hill, which were recently assessed under the NSW Government’s Strategic Release Framework; and
• only support limited new gas production beyond the Narrabri Gas Project and any future extensions, thus reducing the total footprint of land covered by Petroleum Exploration Licences.

WA and QLD: Zero-carbon certification scheme for hydrogen

Following the lead of the ACT and Victorian Governments, both the Queensland and Western Australian Governments have announced that they will also be partnering with the Smart Energy Council's zero-carbon certification scheme to allow for the certification of hydrogen and further develop the renewable hydrogen industry within their respective states.

The Smart Energy Council's zero-carbon certification scheme is an industry-led Guarantee of Origin style scheme, to promote the uptake and distribution of renewable hydrogen, ammonia and metal products in Australia and overseas. Under the scheme, the carbon embedded in the participating products is assessed in order to ensure it has come from a renewable source.

The announcements by the Queensland and Western Australian Governments follows the release of the Federal Government's discussion paper for the proposed design of the Hydrogen Guarantee of Origin scheme for Australia. For more information about the proposed design of Australia's Hydrogen Guarantee of Origin scheme, see our recent Insights.

NT: Seabed mining now prohibited in Territory coastal waters

After further extending the 2012 moratorium on seabed mining to allow time for the NT Environment Protection Authority to prepare and finalise its independent Review of Seabed Mining in the Northern Territory-Environmental Impacts and Management and releasing a draft prohibition declaration for consultation, the NT Government has now gazetted is Declaration of Prohibited Action: Subsea Mining.

From 4 August 2021, all mining related activities within NT coastal waters, including intertidal waters, are prohibited.

The Minister's reasons for the declaration can be found here.

Commonwealth: Review of Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation – Have your say

The Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment has released its consultation paper on the Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation 2012 which will cease to have effect on 1 April 2023 (its sunset date). The Commonwealth Government is currently is considering whether to remake the regulation and if it does, whether reforms should be made, including:

• streamlining due-diligence information received from importers, particularly for repeat imports (ie. where an importer intends to import the same product from the same supplier, made from the same timber species that was harvested from the same area);
• strengthening at-border powers, such as the addition of powers for sampling, seizure and goods control;
• incorporating emerging timber identification technologies;
• optimising the regulatory burden, including removing the due-diligence system requirement for low-frequency importers and processors and adding ‘deemed to comply’ arrangements;
• optimising the products regulated, including changing the scope of regulated products to add or remove certain products and broadening exemptions and reducing burden for low-risk products; and
• additional operational improvements, including addressing issues of illegality in the supply chain.

Submissions on the proposed reforms can be made until Tuesday, 31 August 2021.

International: Draft global biodiversity framework released

The United Nations secretariat of the Convention on Global Biodiversity has released its First Draft of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework which sets goals and targets to achieve the shared vision of a "world of living in harmony with nature" where:

“By 2050, biodiversity is valued, conserved, restored and wisely used, maintaining ecosystem services, sustaining a healthy planet and delivering benefits essential for all people.”

Key to the Draft Framework are its four long-term 2050 goals and twenty-one targets for urgent action over the decade to 2030 which focus on reducing threats to biodiversity, such as pollution from all sources and the impact of climate change, meeting people’s needs through sustainable use and benefit-sharing and the tools and solutions for implementation and mainstreaming.

It is understood that the Draft Framework will be further refined before being presented at the next meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP-15) scheduled for October 2021, in China.