Carbon trading can't wait: Bracks
Posted 1 hour 33 minutes ago
Map: Melbourne 3000
The Victorian Government has criticised the Commonwealth for taking five years to establish a national carbon emissions trading scheme.
Victorian Premier Steve Bracks says businesses are being hampered by uncertainty because carbon caps and prices still have not been set.
He says the Federal Government must have carbon trading up and running before 2012.
"We have a challenge in climate change, a challenge that can't wait until 2012," he said.
"We need to act now and I think the national settings, whilst they are a step in the right direction, they don't have the total answer to the certainty needed from the sector to invest in long-lead investments in the future as well."
Mr Bracks made the remarks as one of Australia's major energy companies said it would cut emissions by 60 per cent by 2050.
Mr Bracks says other companies will find it hard to do the same until three vital parts of a national trading scheme are in place.
"One is clear targets, the second is a price on carbon which can be established, a fair price, and the third is just compensation and structural adjustment which is required in moving to the new system," he said.
"Those three things are required and those three things are missing from a national emissions trading scheme in this country."
Tags: environment, pollution, air-pollution, government-and-politics, federal-government, federal-state-issues, states-and-territories, melbourne-3000