2024-02-21
The Victorian Greens have today secured reforms that will help prevent coal and gas companies from using dodgy loopholes to meet the state’s net zero emission reduction targets.
The reforms will be introduced as amendments to the Victorian Labor Government’s Climate Change and Energy Bill, following negotiations with the Greens.
These reforms will help close a loophole that benefits coal and gas companies by allowing the use of fake offsets or unproven carbon capture and storage to meet our ‘net zero’ emission reduction targets.
Additionally, the Victorian Labor Government has announced an independent inquiry into the state’s power grid following sustained pressure from the Parliament in light of recent transmission tower collapses.
The Greens will not support the Liberals’ inquiry into Victoria's transmission network, but have secured a better outcome for Victorians and for our climate.
Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam, said through constructive negotiations with the government the Greens had been able to get real action on climate change, by cracking down on fake carbon credits and dodgy loopholes that benefit coal and gas companies.
She said broader parliamentary pressure had also led to an independent inquiry into our grid.
Quotes attributable to Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam MLC:
“Coal and gas are fuelling more storms and fires, threatening lives and breaking our energy grid. When it fails, it puts our entire community at risk.
“At the peak of the outages, half a million Victorians were without power. To prevent what happened last week, we need to do more to stop climate change.
“Today the Greens have secured a better outcome for Victorians and the climate.”
Quotes attributable to Deputy Leader of the Victorian Greens, Ellen Sandell MP:
“Coal and gas companies are causing climate change and making our energy system more unstable and unreliable, and these same fossil fuel companies are also using every loophole to keep polluting.
“Old, unreliable coal power stations, and the ageing grid built to support coal, are failing Victorians and causing chaos.
“The Greens get results – and that’s what we’ve done today by negotiating with the Government to close dodgy loopholes that benefit coal and gas companies, as well as supporting an independent inquiry into improving our energy grid.”