Tighter limits on carbon emissions in the country's largest polluting companies will be imposed by the federal government. As announced yesterday (Tuesday 10.01.23) from next July more than two hundred companies will need to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 4.9% per year.
Some 215 of the largest polluting installations in Australia are part of the so-called “safeguard mechanism”. The imposition of stricter carbon emission limits before they are imposed forward was one of the key points in Labour's policy to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 43% from 2005 to 2030 levels.
Federal Minister for Climate Change Chris Bowen said that the changes just announced require major polluters to contribute their share in reducing carbon emissions.
“The facilities covered by the safeguard mechanism are responsible for almost a third of its carbon emissions Australia,” said Mr.. Bowen.
He stressed that “28% of emissions come from them — we will ask for 28% of the emission reduction to come from installations that are part of the protection mechanism”.
Talking to ABC Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen said that the change package announced yesterday
is indeed ambitious: “This is a very ambitious package that we announced yesterday. 5 per cent, 4.9 per cent deductions each year is an ambitious step forward. Between now and 2030, it will take 205 million tons of carbon emissions out of our atmosphere. Now that is equal to two thirds of the emissions from all of Australia's cars, so this is a big deal.” The
emission limits of polluting gases in facilities such as plants using natural gas and coal, aluminum smelters, goods plants and airlines will be based on the intensity of their emissions, not on total polluting gas emissions. This means that companies will not be able to reduce their production in order to meet the new requirements
, and the government will also impose tariffs, in relation to carbon dioxide emissions, on imports of goods as part of the announced changes to the 'safeguard mechanism' and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5% per year by 2030'
