Putting policy into practice - reducing government emissions

Broad triggers whether legislative or policy-based can stimulate quick action and will ready the states and territories for the carbon trading environment which will come into play, possibly by 2010. But Tasmania has gone much, much further by acting to reduce all of the state government's own emissions beginning immediately.

The problem with relying upon land clearing offsets over the last decade to help Australia meet its Kyoto target is that it has sparked no innovation in governance. So the federal government has no program or process in place to measure, reduce and, where possible, eliminate its own emissions. This is what Tasmania has embarked upon, with Cabinet in January this year endorsing a framework for reducing government emissions immediately and over the long term. By mid this year, a phase one audit will be complete of government emissions in those areas readily addressed. By mid 2009, the rest of government will have been audited as well.

Following the audit of emissions this year, reduction targets will be set by an independent body, with agency emission reduction plans in place by the end of 2008. Following next year's auditing, target setting and agency emission reduction plans will be in place, for the rest of government, by the end of 2009.

By 2010, the early emission reduction efforts of agencies will be with the Auditor General for review. The emission reduction framework will have two mid-term reviews, (in 2012 and in 2017), in the lead up to 2020, by which time the community expects at least a 25 per cent cut in state emissions.

The Tasmanian framework is designed for urgent action but is carefully planned in clear stages between now and 2020 as an interim period. It is robust and flexible and could well accommodate an emission cut above 60 per cent by 2050. It is being championed by the Premier and will drive whole-of-government change from Cabinet and the Heads of Agency level.

By 2010, the state government's carbon footprint will be known, emission reduction plans will be in place, a public monitoring and reporting system will be established, and cultural change processes will be well under way. All of this after only two years.

If we are to meet long-term emission reduction targets, in government, business and industry, and in the community, then this is the sort of detailed action that we need to urgently turn our attention to, to complement broad triggers for change. The national mandatory renewable energy target will trigger change, so will mandatory carbon reporting schemes, the carbon trading market, and legislative targets at the state and national levels. But the actions of government to reduce its own emissions is enormously significant, and will quickly spill over into public housing and public transport, and trigger entire new carbon friendly industries.

The hope is that the Tasmanian framework for reducing government emissions will lead to action beyond government at the industry and community levels, and so openness and transparency are two of the principles upon which the framework is based. “What We Have Learnt” papers will be posted on the web after each of the auditing, target setting, monitoring, reporting, evaluation and review stages because this is an iterative process where learning will be by doing. Indeed the entire effort to reduce Tasmanian government emissions will be conducted under full public scrutiny. Agency and cross agency efforts will be publicly reported against targets annually.

By all means we need to have debates about target setting. And inevitably these will become politicised. After all governments can't win on targets. They will either be pilloried for how high they set them or, down the track, pilloried for failing to meet them. But setting targets in a transparent fashion and involving the community invites the participatory action from all sectors that is needed for the most effective action on climate change.

The Australian community to this point has been virtually universally for strong and immediate action on climate change. What a futile achievement it would be to divide the community, as nothing else has, over target setting.

For a government like Tasmania, which is a small state, resource rich, but otherwise relatively poor, to start by reducing its own emissions is a smart first step. Its actions will stimulate the economy, lead by example, encourage the community, and potentially deliver the world's first carbon neutral government operations at least by 2020.

What a wonderful complement to the clean green image that Tasmania's environment inspires. Starting by reducing government emissions is also a huge public policy challenge, which will inspire new ways of working in the public sector that are faster, more co-operative, more focused and accountable. Out of potential crisis then, opportunities can be born.