Shane Rattenbury (Molonglo)
Shane Rattenbury
Speaker - Member of the ACT Legislative Assembly
rattenbury@parliament.act.gov.au
Portfolio Responsibilities
- Attorney General
- Environment, Climate Change & Water
- Energy
- Police & Emergency Services
- Tourism, Sport & Recreation
Canberra is my home and I have lived here for more than 20 years. Recently I have spent time living and working in Asia and Europe.
I came home convinced that Canberra is not only a great place to live, but that it can be even better. With Greens in the Assembly we can build a city with 21st century plans and a 21st century outlook.
Having worked for Greenpeace for the last 10 years, I know that it is possible to make the world a better place. After gaining degrees in Economics and Law (Honours) at ANU and working for the Commonwealth Industry Department, I joined Greenpeace Australia in 1998, where I was able to campaign on local issues like preventing toxic emissions at the Totalcare Incinerator in Mitchell. In 2005, as Head of Greenpeace’s global oceans campaign, I led an expedition of two Greenpeace ships to Antarctica to confront the Japanese whaling fleet. We saved 82 whales by putting ourselves between the whales and the harpoons, and forced the whalers to return home with a reduced catch. In December 2007, as International Political Director, I led the Greenpeace delegation at the vital climate change negotiations in Bali, which successfully started the process for the next phase of the Kyoto Protocol.
I want Canberra to be a city that my children and their friends thank us for. That means an education system that sets up their future and feeds their potential; a health system that is first preventative, then flexible and responsive; employment and industry that is modern, interesting and vibrant; and a city that has a minimal impact on the environment and retains its natural beauty. I also know it’s important to enjoy life and after playing football for many years as a junior, my sporting passion is now triathlon. I have represented Australia at five World Championships, including the Hawaii Ironman. In addition I am a keen photographer, a blogger, and enjoy music and concerts.
July 1st, 2009
ACT Greens MLA for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury says that Canberrans should feel proud that for a small cost per year they are helping make the ACT the leading jurisdiction in Australia on green energy.
“Even when you include the cost of all the ACT’s green energy initiatives, Canberrans still pay, on average, $600 per year less than their NSW neighbours in Queanbeyan.”
“The independent price regulator, the Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission (ICRC), has set electricity prices for 2009-10 factoring in a range of issues that impact on cost - the cost of transmission losses and trading fees and charges, as well as green energy initiatives.”
“But it’s not the ICRC’s job to put a price on benefits to the community, and the feed-in tariff in particular will deliver more than just emissions reductions, it will also help grow local jobs in an industry of the future, and the beginnings of a decentralised energy system.”
“Stage 2 of the feed-in tariff will see large scale installation on the rooves of warehouses and shopping centres, and the cost to Canberrans will only be around an extra 65 cents a week.”*
“Tackling climate change will cost money in the short term, but not taking action will be far more costly – and early action to insulate ourselves from rising electricity prices will pay off in the longer term.”
“The Greens are calling on the Government to ensure that low income families are protected from the price rises by lifting the energy concession rate, which has been dropping in real terms over the past 5 years.” said Mr Rattenbury.
* based on 10mW installed capacity
June 24th, 2009
ACT Greens MLA for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury MLA has slammed the Government’s funding of the Arboretum from the climate budget following the tabling of a report* that indicated the emissions that will be saved by the project.
“The Government has indicated that over a period of 200 years, the Arboretum will sequester around 63,000 tonnes of CO2. Annually this is around 0.00007 percent of the ACT’s emissions each year!” Mr Rattenbury said.
“Yet the Government is spending something like 16 percent of the climate budget on the Arboretum, even before they had any indication of its effectiveness as a climate mitigation measure.”
“Clearly the people are not getting value for money on climate change with the Arboretum.”
“It would be laughable, if it weren’t such a serious issue.” said Mr Rattenbury.
“The people of the ACT expect real action and substantial funding to fix the climate problem. They are tired of being told that Governments are fixing the problems with programs that don’t deliver real emission reductions.”
“This is a climate emergency, not a picnic. We need to turn around spiralling levels of greenhouse emissions and we need to do that quickly.
“The Arboretum may well be a fine tourist attraction and a beautiful place when it’s finished, but the Government must stop pretending that it is playing any significant role in reducing emissions.” Mr Rattenbury said.
*Government Response – 2009-10 Estimates Committee Report, p 19: “…estimates that the Arboretum will reach a maximum carbon stock of around 70,000 tonnes with 90 percent of this amount sequestered within 200 years.”
June 22nd, 2009
The ACT Greens have welcomed the Chief Minister’s announcement that the Majura Parkway EIS consultation period will be extended after his initial refusal. This will enable the community to give considered responses to a major project.
“The Greens used question time last week to ask the Chief Minister to extend the consultation period and hold public information sessions but received no commitment to do so. Today the Chief Minister indicated that the period could indeed be extended, and we welcome the announcement.” ACT Greens Spokesperson for Planning, Caroline Le Couteur MLA said today.
“This is an important project, and a very large one. It’s essential to get it right, and this is the only time the public has to comment on the issues in the EIS.”
“The situation was that there were only 20 days given, and the appendices were so large that they were not able to go up on the ACTPLA website until last Tuesday.”
“We are also calling on the Government, as the proponent of the project, to hold some community information sessions on the EIS.”
Shane Rattenbury MLA, Greens spokesperson for Sport and Tourism, said he was also concerned that the current alignment of the road will destroy a key part of the world-class Majura Pines mountain biking zone.
“Majura Pines has been around for twenty years. It is enormously popular with local riders, it hosts national and international events, and it’s also a major site for walkers, runners and horse-riders,” Mr Rattenbury said.
“These groups now have an opportunity to lodge their concerns and suggest improvements to the project.”
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