Page 325 - Week 01 - Thursday, 17 February 2011
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build our experience and capacity in renewable energy generation, and the sooner and the faster we do that the better off we are all going to be.
Feed-in tariffs seek to spread the cost of renewable energy generation across the whole community while providing an incentive to those who make private investment into renewable energy infrastructure. The intent is, in effect, to provide a small financial incentive to encourage investment in solar or other renewable infrastructure. This is one of the parts of a feed-in tariff model that does not get a lot of debate for those who want to critique it. What we are actually saying is that, as a community, we value clean, green electricity and we are prepared to pay a premium for that.
We are also saying to individuals, collectives, incorporated associations, bodies corporate or business owners that, if they are prepared to put their own capital on the line up-front to help derive that public good, we will help as a whole community to deliver that. We are actually leveraging additional private investment that government could and will never make. It is important to think about that as we look at the cost for various people.
One of the other criticisms of the current scheme that this bill seeks to address is that some people cannot afford to invest in putting panels on their roof as they perhaps do not have the up-front capital or the roof space, or the permission of an owner if they are renting. This bill opens up the definition of eligibility to include community groups and incorporated associations as well as lessees, making it much clearer that the scheme can be accessed more broadly. In creating the provision for community cooperatives in particular, it will facilitate the opportunity for those with less capital or who are in unsuitable premises to invest and participate in the feed-in tariff scheme.
This is a welcome addition to the scheme, and I know there are people out there who are already preparing to take advantage of the changes. I have met people who are saying: “How soon will this legislation pass? I’m starting to get together a bunch of people. I’m holding a meeting and we’re really keen to get going.” They are doing their research, they are searching out sites, they are doing their due diligence and they are getting ready for the Assembly to pass this legislation.
Feed-in tariffs have also come in for some flak as some consider that, because they have a flat rate impact on consumer bills, they impact on those who can afford them the least—that is, if I am a pensioner, my feed-in tariff contribution is the same as if I were on $100,000 a year, $200,000 a year, whatever the case may be. It is true that low income families are much more impacted by rising utility prices than others in our community. There are a range of reasons that I have talked about here in this place before for that, including the difficulty they have in changing their energy consumption, spending time at home during the day and therefore needing to heat the house all day and not being able to easily fund the energy efficiency improvements that will make their houses warmer in winter or cooler in summer. These are all factors that can impact disproportionately on lower income families, depending on the scenario.
The Greens are of the view that we must pursue climate change measures while we protect the interests of those most affected. But this does not mean that the climate
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