Page 126 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 9 December 2008
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
Spark Solar have been taking with the government for nigh on 12 months. Chief Minister, have you read the documents they have provided to you? Do you understand what Spark Solar want to do? They want to commercialise technology that has been developed out of the ANU and keep it in the ACT. You talk about a commitment to sustainability and developing our industry base, but you have no commitment to making it happen. Spark Solar want to be associated with the ANU. They want to stay in the ACT. They want to employ people here. They want to commercialise technology that is being developed by scientists locally. But they are getting no assistance and have received no assistance from a government that is not interested in sustainability industries.
MS PORTER (Ginninderra) (5.43): I concur with the Chief Minister that this government has a good record in greening the ACT economy. There is little doubt that the global economy is changing. We are in a period of uncertainty and change. We are also in a period where we can embrace opportunities to change for the better to address the challenges of climate change and the global financial downturn. The government will play its role, alongside Canberra businesses and the Canberra community, in meeting these challenges.
Looking around me, I see a city well placed to respond to this challenge. More importantly, I see a smart city, a smart economy and a community that can make the most of this change of circumstances to create a new and sustainable future. Climate change is shaping policy across the globe, across the nation and here in the ACT. This government has long recognised that smarter and greener industries are the way to a sustainable future for our economy, our children and our children’s children.
As announced by the Treasurer this morning as part of the second appropriation, this government has committed over $10 million in new climate change initiatives. An important initiative of our new term in office is the establishment of the Department of the Environment, Climate Change, Energy and Water. It will provide an important and reinvigorated focus on how this government leads by example in greening our city and how we can support the community and business in transitioning to a greener, more prosperous economy.
I would like to highlight some of the recent achievements by the ACT government, as well as detail some of the new initiatives in this area. It is with great pride that the ACT government launched Weathering the change: ACT climate change strategy. It identified 43 priority actions that involve all government agencies. All actions have been progressed and a number completed.
Key achievements include leading the nation with the introduction of the country’s most generous electricity feed-in tariff scheme early next year, which the Chief Minister referred to earlier. Based on a gross generation model, it will pay households and businesses that install renewable energy generation a premium payment for every unit of electricity they produce. This not only reduces the territory’s ecological footprint and reliance on fossil fuels but promotes a viable local solar installation and service industry. The government will be providing additional funds to fast-track and implement this landmark scheme.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .