10 November, 2016

Direct Action paying polluters to avoid clearing land they would never have cleared – report

A Green Institute report found 75% of Direct
Action’s vegetation projects were paying to stop
 clearing in regions dominated by mulga
plants, which are usually not cleared for at least
15 years, since they are allowed to regenerate
before being harvested for cattle fodder.
Australia’s “Direct Action” policy aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions is paying polluters millions of dollars to avoid pollution they probably would not have emitted anyway, according to in-depth analysis.

The centrepiece of the government’s Direct Action scheme, introduced by the former Prime Minister Tony Abbott, is the emissions reduction fund (ERF). Through a reverse auction, it pays polluters to pollute less – mostly paying farmers not to clear their land. So far about $1.7bn has been spent through the ERF.

The analysis for the Green Institute, a not-for-profit organisation supporting green policies, says much of that clearing wouldn’t have happened anyway, so shouldn’t count as real abatement.

The authors, Margaret Blakers and Margaret Considine, looked at each of the projects funded and found 75% of the fund’s vegetation projects were paying to stop clearing in regions dominated by mulga plants.

Assuming those projects were paid the average price per hectare, the government paid about $360 per hectare for avoided deforestation and about $205 per hectare for regeneration.

No comments:

Post a Comment