Putting Local Government before the big polluters

In his address to the assembly, Leader of the Australian Greens, Senator Bob Brown, said councils must be consulted more on the implementation of the Rudd Government’s climate change legislation.

He said that councils were getting a raw deal from the legislation, while big polluters would benefit from some $16.5 billion in handouts.

“Imagine if that largesse was going to local community infrastructure – which has a backlog of some $14.5 billion,” Senator Brown said.

He said that while Local Government would deliver much of the mitigation and adaptation work on climate change, it is running a distant last as the Government meets the demands of big polluters.

“Local Government has a long history in involvement in green issues, such as landcare, waste management, local amenity and affordable housing,” he said. “And many councils are already leading the Government, setting admirable zero carbon targets to be delivered not by 2050 or 2040, but by 2020.”

“As such, it is questionable as to whether the Federal Government should be legislating on the issue at all, or rather building individual responsibility.

“Change will not come from leadership. Change will come from individual people, and that change begins with local communities.”

Senator Brown said that although it is a small commitment, it would be far better for the Government to agree to a five per cent reduction in the carbon emissions target than to fail to make a commitment at all.

“However, the legislation currently before Parliament, targeting a five to 25 per cent reduction in emissions, does not show leadership and in fact undermines the ideals of the Copenhagen summit.

“We should be on our way to zero emissions by mid this century, and we should be making polluters pay for their pollution.”

Bob Brown said the USA has just made a $125 billion green deal and Australia should follow suit.