subject: Frbiz.com Reported Reintroduction Of Ets Laws A Mistake :business Lobby [print this page] The Rudd government intends to reintroduce its carbon pollution reduction scheme when parliament resumes in February.
But the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) says it is a mistake for Australia to lock in an ETS design and timing before it sees the "colour of other nation's money".
Its chief executive Peter Anderson says this is particularly the case in the US where the Obama administration is proposing an emission trading model that is not yet through the US Congress.
"Until we see that there is going to be a realistic market for the global trading of carbon then it is a mistake for Australia to lock its position in," Anderson told reporters in Canberra on Tuesday.
He said circumstances had clearly changed after the Copenhagen summit, which showed that there was only a limited scope for a meaningful global agreement including binding commitments by other nations.
"The steps Australia takes need to be very carefully calibrated so that we are not ahead of the game ... we run the risk of prejudicing our own economy and our own living standards when others get off scot-free."
He said the government needed to re-calibrate its ETS strategy and look at the cost benefits if there was not going to be global trading market, while assessing the costs against other options.
At the same time, Australian industry needs to continue taking energy-efficient measures through the introduction of new plant and equipment and research and development of new technologies.
"There is no need for industry to take its foot off the pedal," he said.
But Anderson said he was not mimicking the stance of new Opposition Leader Tony Abbott on climate change.
He said throughout 2009 ACCI and its members have held the view that Australia should not act unilaterally on an ETS and argued against the passage of the government's CPRS.
"We don't know what the coalition is going to come up with in terms of specifics," he said.
He said industry had an obligation to work with the government and its community towards a lower carbon economy.
by: heiyou
welcome to Insurances.net (https://www.insurances.net)
