Climate Neutrality
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The challenge of climate change cannot be addressed by a single policy, technical solution, industry, or government. A combination of technology, market-based and policy solutions will be needed to reduce GHG emissions and achieve climate neutrality.
The role of government is to provide the competitive policy framework and certainty to facilitate investment by industry and support informed consumer choices that will drive GHG emissions reduction across the economy.
Australia’s climate change policy must be part of globally coordinated action to reduce emissions and mitigate the impact of climate change. However, it should also strike the right balance between meeting our Paris Agreement commitments and ensuring continued industry investment and jobs growth to underpin our sovereign capability.
Action on climate change should play a key role in Australia’s recovery from the economic cost of COVID-19, getting people back to work and positioning Australia for a climate- neutral future.
The chemistry industry is committed to enabling further significant GHG emissions reduction through changes to its own processes and product innovations that deliver emissions reduction by other industries and consumers.1
The key to ensuring that Australia’s chemistry industry shares in this transformation is implementing policies and measures that keep Australian industry internationally competitive. If Australian industry is not competitive, this investment will be made in other economies.
1 Enabling the future - chemistry innovations for a low carbon society, ICCA, 2019
Immediate
- An instant asset tax write-off for emissions-reducing capital investment without caps or thresholds. An instant asset tax write-off will support investment and drive earlier GHG emissions reduction across the economy;
- Measures to ensure that Australian industries that invest in emission reduction do not suffer a competitive disadvantage against imports from other economies not playing their part to reduce emissions. Such measures will also prevent GHG emissions leakage to economies not playing their part;
- Changes to the safeguard mechanisms to provide financial support and incentives for investment in emissions- reducing technologies by facilities covered by the mechanism;
- Retention of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
Medium-term
- An instant asset tax write-off for emissions-reducing capital investment without caps or thresholds. An instant asset tax write-off will support investment and drive earlier GHG emissions reduction across the economy;
- Measures to ensure that Australian industries that invest in emission reduction do not suffer a competitive disadvantage against imports from other economies not playing their part to reduce emissions. Such measures will also prevent GHG emissions leakage to economies not playing their part;
- Changes to the safeguard mechanisms to provide financial support and incentives for investment in emissions- reducing technologies by facilities covered by the mechanism;
- Retention of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
