ESG Snapshot: Issue 62
This week's highlights include:
- Energy planning. The Senate has established a committee that will inquire into energy planning and regulation.
- Nature summit. Minister Tanya Plibersek has released the program for next month's Global Nature Positive Summit in Sydney.
- Coal grant. The Queensland government has awarded another coal company with a grant to capture methane and generate electricity.
- 'Urgent need'. Temporary migrant workers in regional areas need greater protection, says the Office of the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
- EV fire risks. A new NSW parliamentary report examines fire risks for electric vehicles and personal mobility devices.
- Circularity. The Productivity Commission is inviting submissions to its circular economy inquiry.
- Climate and nature finance. A new G20 report examines climate finance trends, and an OECD report looks at biodiversity finance.
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The Senate has established a Select Committee on Energy Planning and Regulation, to inquire into the regulation and operation of the Australian energy market.
The inquiry will examine the National Electricity Law, the National Gas Law, and the National Energy Retail Law, as well as the key institutions that administer and operate energy markets.
Committee members include senators Karen Grogan (Labor), Matt Canavan (Nationals), Jonathon Duniam (Liberals), David Pocock (independent), and Larissa Waters (Greens).
The committee is due to report on 20 December 2024.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has released the program for the Global Nature Positive Summit, which will take place from October 8 to 10.
DCCEEW has released a draft version of CFI Rule changes that are intended to improve ACCU Scheme transparency.
Consultation opportunity - support for transformational investments. Treasury is inviting feedback by 4 October on a new "front door" for major, transformational investments, that could entail coordinated engagement with relevant agencies, and facilitating public financing.
Consultation opportunity - circular economy. The Productivity Commission has invited submissions by 1 November, for its inquiry into opportunities in the circular economy.
Organisations appearing before last Friday's hearing of a Senate committee inquiry into waste and recycling policies included the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence, the Boomerang Alliance, the NSW EPA, the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation, and MRA Consulting.
Organisations appearing before last Friday's hearing of a Senate select committee inquiry into the impact of climate risk on insurance premiums included ASIC, APRA and the ACCC, as well as the Insurance Australia Group. Transcript is not yet available.
The committee has scheduled further hearings for 30 September and 1 October.
The Clean Energy Finance Corporation is providing finance totalling $120 million to facilitate the development of the Victorian component of the VNI West transmission link.
The project will help unlock some 3.4GW of additional renewable generation in Victoria and facilitate an estimated additional 1.9GW of transfer capacity between Victoria and NSW. It will also enhance the energy reliability of Victoria by enabling access to Snowy 2.0.
Meanwhile, the CEFC is also providing a $70 million loan to Flinders Port Holdings, marking its first direct finance in the maritime sector.
The CEFC capital will finance electrification initiatives across FPH’s seven South Australian ports.
ARENA has provided a $2.2 million grant to an alliance of three western Melbourne councils to support an $8.9 million project that aims to facilitate the electrification of their vehicle fleets, including waste and parks maintenance vehicles.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has published an information paper in advance of next year's release of the first National Ecosystem Accounts for Australia.
The accounts will measure and value Australia’s ecosystems, showing the contribution the environment makes to Australia’s economic and social wellbeing. They are being developed with the support of DCCEEW and CSIRO.
The federal government is encouraging more Australian organisations to nominate as adopters of the TNFD nature disclosure framework, ahead of its Global Nature Positive Summit in Sydney.
The 14 Australian companies that have so far signed up as TNFD Adopters include Brambles, GPT Group, and Telstra.
The Senate committee inquiring into the transition to electric vehicles has scheduled hearings for October 11 and 17.
Open consultations:
- Nature repair market. The federal government is inviting comments by 30 September on Rules that will operate under the Nature Repair Act 2023.
- Battery Breakthrough Initiative. Comments on an ARENA consultation paper on the proposed $523.2 million Battery Breakthrough Initiative are due by 7 October.
- PFAS. Submissions to a Senate select committee inquiry into PFAS are due by 19 December.
Award opportunity. Nominations are now being accepted for the 36th annual Banksia sustainability awards. Entries must be submitted by 6 December.
The state government will provide an unspecified grant through its Low Emissions Investment Partnerships (LEIP) program to support a project that will capture methane from Kestrel Coal Resources' Kestrel underground metallurgical coal mine, which will be used to generate electricity.
The grant will help fund the construction of a 30MW power station, that will generate electricity from the methane. Kestrel, which is covered by the federal Safeguard Mechanism, earlier this year started mining in a part of its site which has significantly higher methane levels.
The state government several weeks ago announced funding for a similar project at the South Walker Creek coal mine.
The state government and the University of Queensland's Sustainable Minerals Institute have formed a Critical Minerals and Circular Economy Research Alliance that will oversee an $8 million research program to help develop a critical minerals industry that encompasses a circular economy approach.
The federal and state governments are funding the establishment of a TAFE Clean Energy (Batteries) Centre of Excellence that will operate state-wide under the auspices of TAFE Queensland SkillsTech.
Open consultations:
- PFAS. The state government is consulting on a proposal to amend the threshold values for PFAS in regulated waste. Comments are due by 27 September.
The state government has released a Consumer energy strategy that aims to maximise the benefits of the energy transition for households and small business.
The strategy includes $290 million in new funding to be spent over four years.
There is "an increasingly urgent need" to protect temporary migrant workers, particularly in agriculture, horticulture and meat processing in rural NSW, from modern slavery risks, according to a new report from the Office of the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
These risks include debt bondage, deceptive recruiting, forced labour and, in extreme cases, servitude, sexual servitude or even human trafficking, the report says.
Electric vehicle fires are relatively rare, and less common than internal combustion engine vehicle fires, according to a new report from the NSW Parliament's Joint Standing Committee on fire risks in EVs and personal mobility devices.
"However, when EV battery-related fires do occur, they are severe and more difficult to extinguish," it says.
"Batteries used in personal mobility devices present higher fire risks than batteries used in other electric vehicles," it adds.
The report recommends that the state government advocate for federal action to strengthen quality control measures for personal mobility devices.
Organisations giving evidence to a Parliamentary committee hearing last Friday into the state government's biodiversity offsets Bill included the Urban Development Institute, the NSW Minerals Council, Cement Aggregates Australia, the Wentworth Group, and the Ecological Consultants Association.
Grant opportunity - FOGO. The EPA is inviting applications under the third round of its $46 million 'Go FOGO' grants program, which allows councils to claim up to $50 per household to support the transition to FOGO. Applications close on 19 November.
Consultation opportunity - forestry. The Independent Forestry Panel, which is examining the sustainability of current and future NSW forestry operations, is inviting submissions by 13 October.
Open consultations:
- Coal mines. The EPA is surveying community members on the regulation of coal mines, with responses due by 2 October.
- Problematic plastics. Comments on an EPA draft action plan on plastics are due by 4 November.
The state government has announced that Sharan Burrow and Cameron Garnsworthy will join the SEC's board of directors.
Burrow is a former general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation and a former president of the ACTU. Garnsworthy is the managing direct of SunCable Australia, and has previously served on the board of the Clean Energy Council.
Open consultations:
- Container deposits. Comments are due by 25 October on a draft Environment Protection (Beverage Container Deposit Scheme) Amendment Bill 2024.
The Western Australian government has updated its domestic gas policy, and will require new onshore gas projects to reserve 80% of their gas production for use in the state, up until 2030.
After that time, these projects will need to reserve 100% of production for domestic use.
The existing 15% reservation requirement for offshore LNG projects remains unchanged. A 15% reservation will also remain in place for the 'first-mover' in the Canning Basin, to encourage development in the state's north.
The EPA has established a Scientific Advisory Council to ensure it is kept up to date with the latest scientific knowledge.
The state government has announced the inaugural members of its new Innovation Advisory Board.
The state government has released a new Guide to future climate projections for water management in Western Australia. The guide is targeted at water planners, scientists and decision-makers.
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The UN Global Summit of the Future has adopted a Pact for the Future, dealing with matters including sustainable development and financing, peace and security, digital cooperation, youth and future generations, and global governance.
"We are at a time of profound global transformation," it says. "If we do not change course, we risk tipping into a future of persistent crisis and breakdown."
Multilateral development banks financed US$125 billion in climate actions worldwide in 2023, according to a new Joint report on climate finance of the multilateral development banks.
Increasing investments to mitigate and adapt to climate change is one of the priority themes in the Finance Track of this year's G20, under the presidency of Brasil.
The report also shows that the amount of private financing mobilised for small and middle-income countries was US$28.3 billion. The report precedes this November's COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan, which will have a strong focus on finance.
Meanwhile, by 2030, the Asia Development Bank will aim to ensure climate finance constitutes 50% of its total annual committed financing volume, according to its new Strategy 2030 mid-term review.
In addition, the OECD has released a new report on biodiversity finance trends from 2015 to 2022.
The Scottish government has released a Green industrial strategy, which aims to maximise Scotland's wind economy, develop a self-sustaining CCUS sector, grow the hydrogen sector, and develop a green economy professional and financial services sector that has global reach.
Global investor alliance CDP has released a report on Environmental disclosure trends in the Asia Pacific.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Susan Brown to the post of Assistant Administrator and Director, Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy of the United Nations Development Programme.
Susan Brown, who has worked in senior executive roles for organisations including vaccine alliance Gavi, and WWF International, began her career as coordinator of the North Queensland Conservation Council, and was later a political advisor in Canberra.
"A senior advocacy, policy and communications expert, Ms Brown comes to UNDP after a lifetime commitment to the development of good public policy, sustainable development advocacy and constructive political engagement," the Secretary-General said.
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