Greens Member for Brindabella, Amanda Bresnan MLA, will introduce a motion into the legislative assembly on Wednesday to address the unacceptably high levels of wood smoke in the Tuggeranong Valley.

“Wood smoke pollution continues to be a problem in the Valley and the ACT Government must step up and expand on it’s commitment to the Wood Heater Replacement program,” Ms Bresnan said today.

“The tiny particles from wood smoke create a great deal of discomfort when breathed into the lungs. For people who suffer from respiratory and heart problems,  especially asthma,  this can be very serious.

“This motion recognises that wood smoke pollution is a serious problem and that the ACT has been lagging behind other states in addressing it.

“I acknowledge that the Government has been working  to  address the build up of wood smoke in Tuggeranong  through the Don’t Burn Tonight campaign and ACT Wood Heater Replacement Program.

“These programs have had some success,  but the Government hasn’t been active enough in promoting them or using them as a tool to educate people about the impacts of wood smoke.

“The Greens are calling on the government  to make air quality information publicly available , and we are pleased that the Government will look at making this information available on a daily or weekly basis.

“By providing information through more targeted education programs people can make more considered decisions about their heating, health and environment.

“The Greens are committed to addressing the health and environmental impact of excessive wood smoke in the  Tuggeranong Valley,” Ms Bresnan said.

The ACT Government needs to muscle up its draft Energy Policy if it wants to meet a 40% reduction in emissions by 2020 as recommended in an Assembly committee last year Greens Energy and Climate Change spokesperson Shane Rattenbury said today.

The Greens have made a critical submission to the draft policy which addresses issues around energy efficiency, production and consumption habits.

“Tackling energy production and consumption is critical to reducing our greenhouse emissions, but the Draft Policy is full of non-committal language and isn’t clear about how the ACT will achieve a 40% reduction in emissions. The final version really needs to be tougher,” said Shane Rattenbury.

“The cheapest way to reach the target is through money-saving energy efficiency measures and Minister Corbell himself says ‘At the heart of this policy is a massive boost to energy efficiency…’ “

“Yet the Draft Policy actually only commits to energy efficiency measures that will reduce the ACT’s greenhouse emissions by 10% less that what they would normally be in 2020.”

The Greens submission to the Governments draft energy plan includes:
- A call for the Government to commit to a 40% by 2020 target
- A call to include energy efficiency standards for residential and commercial buildings alongside incentives.
- A call on Government to extend the Energy Concession rebate and for all energy efficiency programs to target at risk households.

“Many of the aspirations in the paper are expressed in estimates and different units, making it difficult for the public to be clear about exactly where the energy Roadmap is taking us.”

“The draft policy hasn’t taken a long-term strategic view about how much green energy we should purchase from outside the ACT versus how much we should generate here in the Territory, and when we will be able to phase out our use of coal-fired electricity.

“The good news is that this version is only a draft, and that after receiving input from the community, there is still time for the Government to deliver a world class energy policy for the ACT,” Mr Rattenbury said.

ACT Greens Energy Policy Submission

ACT Greens Parliamentary Convenor, Meredith Hunter MLA, has welcomed federal Attorney General, Robert McClelland’s decision to reinstate the Australia-Ethiopia intercountry adoption program.

“When the program was suspended last year, many potential parents were left in limbo, with their long wait for a child becoming totally uncertain,” Ms Hunter said today.

“I wrote to the Attorney General in December and he advised me that a review into the viability of the program and its compliance with the principles of the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Intercountry Adoption was required.”

“The restarted program will have improved processes and safeguards to ensure compliance with the convention.”

“I believe that the Attorney Generals Department has worked hard to conclude this matter as quickly as possible, and the program is now back up and running.”

“The resumption of the program is fantastic news to those involved.”

“This is the result we had hoped for and the ACT Greens join the applicants and families involved in welcoming this decision,” Ms Hunter said.