CSIRO backs coal-friendly technologies - Breaking News - National - Breaking News

Australia's primary scientific organisation has come out in support of the federal government's coal-friendly technologies, moving away from renewable energy research.
The CSIRO said it would focus $90 million in resources on low-emission projects such as carbon sequestration instead of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.
But jobs will be shed from its current workforce of 6,500 and cuts will also be made to the organisation's traditional research areas of manufacturing and agriculture, The Australian newspaper reports.
Opposition science spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said Australia had the world's highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita.
"But the CSIRO doesn't seem to care about renewable energy research," Ms Macklin said.
But CSIRO chief Geoff Garrett said industry and consumers depended heavily on coal to fire electricity and that was unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.
He also defended the organisation's industry partnerships, saying they were pivotal.
"The key point is making great science and great research accessible to Joe Public," Dr Garrett said.
© 2006 AAP