Emissions Reduction Fund

Australia is a global top-ten deforester and Queensland is leading the way

When you think of devastating deforestation and extinction you usually think of the Amazon, Borneo and the Congo.

But eastern Australia ranks alongside these in the top 10 of the world鈥檚 major deforestation fronts 鈥 the . Most of the clearing is happening in Queensland and it is accelerating.

Federal government spends $1.4 billion planting trees while land clearing continues

The federal government announced on April 13 the Emissions Reduction Fund had spent another $133 million on carbon emissions abatement.

This included聽about $100 million on planting trees to save the equivalent of 8.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.

At the same time the states permit land clearing and deforestation that emits millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and is responsible for 8% of Australia鈥檚 emissions.

'Direct Action' will not deliver emissions reduction target

The federal government has now spent $1.22 billion on its 鈥淒irect Action鈥 policy that is supposed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but will actually allow them to increase. The results of the government's second round of emissions reverse auctions under the Direct Action scheme were released on November 12, revealing that the Clean Energy Regulator had paid $557 million to companies in return for emissions cuts of 45 million tonnes of CO鈧. The first auction, in April this year, spent $660 million to buy 47.3 million tonnes.

Direct Action Safeguard Mechanism provides no safeguard at all

Environment Victoria released this statement on May 5. * * * Analysis by Environment Victoria has revealed that Australia鈥檚 greenhouse gas emissions could rise by up to 20% without breaching the proposed Safeguard Mechanism in the Abbott government鈥檚 Emissions Reduction Fund because of the government鈥檚 proposed 鈥渟pecial treatment鈥 of coal generators in the electricity sector.