Danny Chan
The Climate Change Authority (CCA) has released a consultation paper on its 2020 review of the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF). To inform its review, the Authority is currently inviting input from organisations, businesses and individuals.
Established in 2014, the ERF is a government policy to incentivise emissions reductions. It is key to Australia meeting its commitments under the Paris Agreement: a 26–28 per cent reduction of emissions from 2005 levels by 2030.
The ERF provides funding towards projects that reduce emissions or enhance carbon storage – issuing them with Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), which can then be purchased by the government to help meet the 2030 target. These projects include HVAC&R, along with broader energy efficiency measures, agriculture, land management, mining and transport.
In the 2020 review, the Authority is considering the overall performance of the ERF. Based on previous reviews and consultation undertaken for the recent “Prospering in a low emissions” world report, it has identified the following areas of focus:
- Maintaining integrity and optimising governance
- Managing risks to abatement
- Opportunities for enhancing outcomes.
The CCA says it is open to considering other matters through the review process, and welcomes all views on how the ERF is performing and/or how its operation could be improved.
Recognising the severe disruption caused by COVID-19, the Authority acknowledges that this may be a difficult period for some to contribute a submission. In order to assist, they are providing a range of flexible consultation options.
The Climate Change Authority is an independent statutory agency, established to provide expert, evidence-based advice on Australia’s climate change policy.
More details on how to make a submission are available here.
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