ESG Snapshot: Issue 122

This week's highlights include:

• MSO relief measure. Australia releases up to 762 million litres to ease regional fuel shortages.
• Fairer super reforms. Parliament to pass LISTO-targeted changes boosting up to $810/year for 1.3 million Australians.
• Robodebt findings released. NACC finds 2 of 6 referrals committed serious corrupt conduct; report promotes transparency, defers reforms.
• Scaling Al. DTA launches eight-principle guidance to turn Al trials into enterprise-ready government solutions by 2026.
• Low-carbon fuels push. CSIRO outlines biogenic routes to cut emissions and secure domestic supply by 2030.
• Australia narrows gender gap. Pay gap tightens to 11.5%, global rank 13th, dads boost parental leave.
• Fraud hits one-seventh. 3.2m Australians affected; banks reimburse 72%, leaving $350m losses, prompting scrutiny of fraud safeguards.
• Funding for regional growth. Regional NSW firms gain access to $1.5b FMA fund, accelerating clean-energy manufacturing and supply chains.
• Timber for tomorrow. Queensland's 2050 plan aims to boost timber supply, meet 2044 housing, and support major infrastructure.
• WA funding opens. WA to back grassroots land and water projects via 2026 community stewardship grants.
• Nature as lever? WBCSD's Nature Strategy Accelerator translates data into strategic capital decisions.
• Olive waste power play. Circular by-products boost soil quality and energy; EU study shows 63% efficiency, profits, CO2 cuts.

ESG Snapshot - powered by the Business Council for Sustainable Development Australia.

Statutory development – fuel quality standards - The Australian government has temporarily amended fuel quality standards to allow higher sulfur levels for 60 days to bolster domestic supply.

Instrument: temporary amendment to Australia’s fuel quality standards; operative: allows higher sulfur levels for 60 days, enabling around 100 million litres a month of petrol previously exported to be blended into domestic supply, with Ampol prioritising regions of shortage.

The government says the measure targets regional supply pressures and is supported by Ampol’s commitment to prioritise redirected fuel.

Meanwhile, supply chains are monitored as IEA actions are endorsed and expected ships continue arrivals, with at least 100 million litres per month redirected by the end of the 60‑day window starting from March 12, 2026.

Australia's alternative fuel opportunities - Low-carbon liquid fuels policy and technology development have implications for emissions reductions in aviation, shipping and remote industry, says Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

“There’s a lot of work to do in some of those technology blocks,” the CSIRO says.

Statutory development – super reforms - The government has introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment Bill 2026 to reform LISTO and broaden fairness.

Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Bill 2026 will boost LISTO and target concessions for balances over $3 million across Australia.

The government says the changes would reach around 1.3 million Australians, including about 750,000 women and 550,000 under 30, by 2026–27. LISTO uplift can be up to $810 per year with an average $410 for affected workers.

AFCA Rules and Operational Guidelines Update - Following ASIC approval, AFCA has published its updated Rules and Operational Guidelines concerning the AFCA scheme.

The National Anti-Corruption Commission has today published its investigation report concerning the 6 individuals referred by the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme under the National Anti-Corruption Commission Act 2022.

The Digital Transformation Agency is issuing guidance for AI proof-of-concept to scale for government AI programmes that aims to support agencies in planning PoCs around defined business outcomes and principles.

Grant opportunity – Critical minerals refining technologies. The CMCI CRC has been awarded $53 million to drive the development and commercialisation of new critical minerals refining technologies.

Applications are invited from consortia to demonstrate scalable refining technologies with industry collaboration

• Demonstrate scalable refining technology for critical minerals.
• Enable commercialisation and industry uptake through partnerships with Australian businesses and research organisations.
• Showcase environmental and economic benefits, including onshore processing and job creation.

Grant opportunity – offshore renewables and migratory whales. The International Whaling Commission has opened a call for research proposals to understand how offshore renewable energy might affect migratory whales.

Eligibility criteria are published and invite projects that assess how underwater noise construction impacts whale behaviour and migration. The research will:

• demonstrate impacts of underwater noise on migratory whales.
• evaluate construction impacts on whale habitats and movements.
• develop and validate mitigation strategies to reduce adverse effects.

The Status of Women Report Card 2026 has implications for the gender pay gap metric, currently at 11.5%, says the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

The report highlights progress on pay equity and male participation in parental leave, indicating policy should intensify efforts to close remaining gender gaps, says the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

“In 2025, men entered aged and disabled care at 6.2% vs 2.1% for women”, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet says.

Gender equity in science funding and recognition has implications for research careers and inclusivity, says Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation.

The piece highlights how historical sidelining motivates stronger governance on equitable authorship and credit in science, says ANSTO.

ABS data on personal fraud has implications for consumer protection policies and financial resilience metrics, says Australian Bureau of Statistics.

"The number of Australians experiencing card fraud has doubled over the past decade,".

"Total losses from card fraud in the last 12 months were estimated at $2.2 billion nationally," - the ABS say.

National Groundwater Awareness Week - "Around 44% of the world’s population depends on Groundwater as its primary water source." says Department for Environment and Water, SA.

"Having national guidelines will also ensure consistency across states and territories." says DCCEEW.

The Australian Taxation Office has announced 2026 Evergreen Program applications under the ATO Evergreen Program, which aims to workforce transition for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Applications are now open for the next round, with a deadline of 9 April 2026.

Open consultations:

• The Australian Energy Market Commission is consulting on draft rule proposing new technical standards for large data centres connecting to the National Electricity Market that aims to support grid stability. Submissions are due by 7 May 2026.
• The House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water is conducting an inquiry into solar panel reuse and recycling in Australia. The Committee is seeking written submissions responding to the terms of reference, with submissions due by 27 March 2026.

The Queensland Government is issuing the Queensland Future Timber Plan 2050 for forestry and timber that aims to ensure Queensland’s forestry and timber industry remains innovative, productive and sustainable.

Women in Resources, Empowering Development (WIRED) pilot program. The Crisafulli Government has invested $500,000 in the Women in Resources: Empowering Development pilot program.

The funding is expected to strengthen the skills pipeline and regional job opportunities by:

• upskilling and reskilling of women into machinery operators, plant technicians, or site supervisors.
• scale training programs that support regional jobs and economic growth.
• enable early sector engagement and the mid-2026 launch of the WIRED pilot.

The Minns Government has granted planning approval for the Good Earth Green Hydrogen and Ammonia project in Moree, NSW.

Local benefits include at least 60 construction jobs and 10 permanent roles, and the project will produce 4,500 tonnes of ammonia per year.

Grant opportunity – Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund. The Australian Government has opened opportunities under the $1.5 billion Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund, inviting regional NSW businesses to participate in national priority projects across green metals, renewable energy technology manufacturing and low carbon liquid fuels.

Eligible proposals should align with the fund’s priority areas in regional NSW

• demonstrate alignment with regional NSW manufacturing and supply chain strengths.
• deploy scalable green technology manufacturing and low carbon fuels demonstrations.
• validate market readiness and reduce emissions in target sectors.

Renewable manufacturing across regional NSW - The NSW Government has invested $52 million to support renewable manufacturing projects across regional NSW.

Prioritised projects:

• Demonstrate scalable renewable manufacturing capabilities within regional NSW.
• Create local employment and strengthen regional supply chains.
• Deploy innovative technologies that reduce emissions and support energy transition.

Communities join the fight to save endangered Bell’s turtles - “Without intervention, these populations are heading towards extinction,” says Dr Lou Streeting, Postdoctoral Fellow, University of New England.

“Support and hands-on involvement from landholders, community members and Indigenous rangers have been very important to the success of this long-term conservation project,” says Anya Salmon, Senior Land Services Officer, Northern Tablelands Local Land Services.

Grant opportunity – Mortgage Stress Victoria funding expansion. Mortgage Stress Victoria has received $4 million in the Victorian Budget 2025/26 to expand free mortgage stress services and will extend access from 1 May.

Eligibility is limited to initiatives that expand access to free mortgage stress legal and financial support for households earning up to $90,000

• deploy free mortgage stress legal and financial support services.
• scale access to services for households earning up to $90,000.
• improve outreach and early intervention across mortgage stress stages.

Victoria leads the nation in out-of-hospital cardiac survival, with the highest OHCA responses on record and 80% bystander CPR, says the Allan Labor Government.

"Victoria leads the nation when it comes to out-of-hospital cardiac survival rates – thanks to the incredible actions of bystanders and our ambos," the Minister for Ambulance Services says.

The Government of Western Australia is convening a Fuel Security Roundtable for informing Western Australia's response to potential future disruptions to fuel supply.

Grant opportunity – Community Stewardship Grants in Western Australia. The 2026 Community Stewardship Grants has opened and funding is available to progress community-led land and water conservation projects across WA up to $450,000 per grant.

Applications are invited from natural resource management groups Local Government authorities Aboriginal organisations community resource centres schools and Recognised Biosecurity Groups

• Demonstrate community led land and water conservation impact across Western Australia.
• Deploy projects with funding in the $1,000 to $450,000 range including short term and longer term initiatives.
• Enable applications from natural resource management groups Local Government authorities Aboriginal organisations community resource centres schools and Recognised Biosecurity Groups.

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Compliance and ESG monitoring is becoming a product category - Datamaran launched a global ESG regulation tracker, reflecting demand for continuous rule-change monitoring as obligations diverge

Heavy industry is shifting from targets to build activity - Fortescue’s Pilbara solar construction is being positioned as direct diesel/gas displacement through on-site generation

Statutory development – Industrial Accelerator Act - The European Commission has adopted a legislative proposal to boost demand for low-carbon, European-made technologies.

The Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) aims to boost manufacturing, grow businesses and create jobs in the EU, while supporting industry's adoption of cleaner, future-ready technologies across EU manufacturing, with special attention to energy-intensive industries and clean technologies.

The act is intended to increase decarbonised and resilient industrial production in the EU and will complement the Circular Economy Act by boosting recycling and access to secondary raw materials, according to the commission.

Grant opportunity – UNCCD COP17 Land and Drought Media Reporting Fellowship. The UNCCD and the IDRA have launched the COP17 Land and Drought Media Reporting Fellowship to support journalists covering the growing pressure on the world’s land and its implications for food and water security.

Candidates are invited to demonstrate strong reporting on environment and land use and to work with a recognised media outlet

• Demonstrate a strong track record of reporting on environment, climate, agriculture, development, or related issues.
• Be based in countries affected by desertification, land degradation and drought and work with a recognised media outlet.
• Submit three samples of relevant published work and a short proposal outlining three potential stories, including one ahead of COP17.

WBCSD, with Anthesis Group, has launched the "Nature Strategy Accelerator" for member companies as part of accelerating nature integration into corporate strategy.

The Now for Nature campaign requires high-level buy-in from board or C-suite to open pathways for deeper integration and governance reform.

International Governments' pledge to restore one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030 has implications for restoration metrics and land governance, says the FAO.

"The findings of the Status of Land Tenure and Governance Report confirm that secure and equitable land tenure is a prerequisite for sustainable land management," the FAO says.

"Restoration targets aim to recover one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030," - UNCCD.

Australia-India partnership takes step closer to green steel through world-first use of ag waste in steelmaking.

"This trial is a world-first demonstration of how agricultural waste can be harnessed to decarbonise steelmaking at scale." says Warren Flentje.

"India’s steel sector is both a major employer and a significant source of emissions. Our partnership with the Indian Institute of Science and JSPL has demonstrated that biomass can be a viable alternative to coal, especially in regional areas where surplus agri-waste and coal DRI facilities co-exist.", CSIRO.

New research into Saudi Arabian olive farms and oil mills reveals how olive waste can provide a range of environmental, economic and soil quality benefits.

“These organic waste materials contain compounds which can be either detrimental or beneficial to the environment, depending on how they are managed,” says the Directorate-General for Environment.

“The results of this study provide compelling evidence for both the environmental and economic advantages of using olive industry waste within a circular bioeconomy framework which recaptures waste as a resource,” says the study.

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