James Bidgood (Dawson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Australian Centre for Renewable Energy Bill 2009. This bill proposes to establish the Australian Centre for Renewable Energy, known as ACRE, board. Renewable energy, along with clean coal technology, is an essential part of Australia’s low emissions energy mix and it is important to Australia’s energy security. It plays a strong role in reducing Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions and the Australian government’s support for renewable energy assists industry development, reduces barriers to the national electricity market and provides community access to renewable energy.

The government is serious about renewable energy. This has been clearly demonstrated by the government’s action to increase the renewable energy target, known as RET, to encourage additional generation of electricity from renewable energy sources to a 20 per cent share of renewables in Australia’s electricity supply by 2020. That is up from the previous government’s target of just two per cent. The ACRE board will be a primary source of advice for the government on renewable energy and enabling technology matters.

The board will also play a vital role in assisting ACRE to achieve its objective, which is to promote the development, commercialisation and deployment of renewable energy and enabling technologies and to improve their competitiveness in Australia. The board will help ACRE achieve these objectives by fulfilling its functions, which are set out in this bill. These functions are to provide advice to the minister in relation to renewable energy and enabling technologies, including advice in relation to the following eight key points: point 1, the strategy is to fund and promote the development, commercialisation and use of renewable energy technologies; point 2 is the funding of renewable energy technology projects and measures, including the assessment of these projects and measures, being considered by the board for funding; point 3 is the management of renewable energy technology programs; point 4 is improving the existing program delivery; point 5 is the provision of venture capital funding; point 6 is the priority areas for government support; point 7 is establishing links with state and territory government agencies and the private sector, with a view to developing strategies for stimulating investment in renewable energy technologies; and, finally, point 8 is any other functions that the minister, by writing, directs the board to perform. These are the eight key points in this bill.

By establishing the ACRE board as a statutory advisory board, the government will ensure that the ACRE board provides independent advice on renewable energy and enabling technologies to the government, renewable energy technologies like biomass cogeneration. And I am pleased to say that in my seat of Dawson Mackay Sugar has had a program on the table now for more than 10 years, and it is only this government that, through its legislation on RETs, has enabled it to go forward into a green light situation—a go situation—with a $110 million project which will not cost the taxpayers of this nation one cent. It will supply one-third of the electricity needs of Mackay, and the plans are for construction of a 36-megawatt renewable biomass cogeneration plant in Mackay. This is all thanks to the certainty given by this government of a 20 per cent renewable energy target. Along with this, the Queensland government has also invested $9 million as a grant to enable research into an ethanol plant to stand alongside the cogeneration biomass plant.

These exciting developments have only been made possible by the political determination of this government to get on with the job and to really be serious about investing in renewable, sustainable, green energy development. This project will generate 270 construction jobs directly and the plant alone, as I said, will power 33 per cent of Mackay city’s power requirements. Environmentally, emissions will be reduced by a staggering 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. Yes, Mr Deputy Speaker, you did hear that correctly, I said 200,000 tonnes per year. It is all due to the fact that this government got on with the job of legislating on the renewable energy target. Remember, these plans have been on the table for over 10 years because the previous government did not have the political determination to get on and get real with the job of reducing carbon emissions. They did not have the political will. This government has and we are now enabling exciting projects like this.

This project is carbon neutral. That is so exciting. Every year the green gold of sugarcane grows and from that we can produce one third of the needs for electricity for the people of Mackay. The exciting thing about this project, because all the engineering and science has been done and it has just been waiting for the political determination to give it the green light to go ahead, is that it can be duplicated right up the coast of North Queensland. In the long term the industry projects that in Far North Queensland cogeneration will supply up to 70 per cent of households by 2016. It is truly revolutionary that something which has been growing for hundreds of years, sugarcane, will suddenly be utilised to provide the electricity needs of 70 per cent of households by 2016. All it needed was the political determination to get on with the job of reducing carbon emissions.

Up in the north of my seat, in the Burdekin, Herbert and Townsville areas, by 2016 they are talking about supplying greater capacity than required for household consumption. That truly is an exciting prospect. The industry is even looking at supplying about 80 per cent of the estimated households around the Whitsunday and hinterland area of Mackay. It is truly amazing, with the political determination to get the job done.

Establishing the ACRE board in statute also gives it a very significant degree of protection. Its structures, attributes and functions can only be amended or abolished by an act of parliament. The ACRE board will also have a high degree of accountability as it will have to report annually to the Minister for Resources and Energy. Establishing the CEO in this legislation will give ACRE a clear leadership team and further establish ACRE as a separate brand.

As I said at the start, this Rudd Labor government truly believes that renewable energy and clean coal technologies are essential parts of Australia’s low emissions energy mix. This is important to Australia’s energy security.

Unlike the coalition, we will never support a nuclear future for Australia. I will never stand for nuclear power plants in Mackay, the Whitsundays, Bowen, Burdekin or Townsville. I will not stand and see a nuclear plant put on the Great Barrier Reef and neither will the people of Dawson. The candidate standing against me, a candidate of the National Party, who is on Mackay Regional Council, believes in the words of Senator Barnaby Joyce that every council around the nation should have a vote on whether they want a nuclear power plant in their backyard. I call upon that councillor who is going to be standing against me at the next election to come out and say they will not allow a nuclear power plant at Mackay, the Whitsundays, the Great Barrier Reef, Bowen, Ayr or South Townsville. It will not happen on my watch and God forbid that anyone else would allow it to happen. We are not going to go down the nuclear road.

If you go down the nuclear road you will destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs that are related to the mining industry in this nation. If you go down the nuclear road you will set an example, as one of the world’s greatest coal exporters, that you have put the white flag up on the mining industry and you will consign hundreds of thousands of people in mining related jobs to the dole queue. I think it is a terrible thing that the member on the other side is saying that that is the way to go. It is not the way to go. We do not put the white flag up. We do not surrender on the coal industry. I am here as the miners’ friend—always have been, always will be. This Rudd Labor government will stand by the mining industry. We will protect the industry, we will protect the jobs and we will expand our exports and our productivity, and we will add to the bottom line of this nation, which those opposite failed to do.

By going down the nuclear road, you will destroy the Australian coal industry. Look at the example of the United Kingdom, with only four working pits left. Look at the example of France, where 80 per cent of its energy requirements are supplied by nuclear power and there is no mining industry. That is the road you on the other side of this House will take us down. We will not go down the nuclear road. We will not surrender the coalmining industry. We will stand by the miners and we will stand by those communities which faithfully add to the bottom line of this nation.

It is this government which has provided for aged-care pensions against the backdrop of the worst recession in 75 years. You on the other side of the House failed to deliver $65 a fortnight to single aged people in our community when you had the riches of the minerals boom. You failed; we have succeeded. We are a party of the future; you are a party who are divided. You are in disunity and you will never lead. You do not have the interests of this nation’s future at heart. You are not acting in the national interest; this government is.

I commend this bill to the House because it will invest in future renewable, sustainable, green, clean coal technologies. This is the way to go, not the nuclear road. You will destroy the coalmining industry; we will save it by investments and by bills such as this. I totally, wholeheartedly, passionately commend this bill to the House.

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