Victoria suffers emission surge

Bendigo Advertiser
08/01/2008 Page: 4

VICTORIA pumped 30 per cent more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere last year than in 1990, it was revealed yesterday. Coal-fired electricity contributed almost 60 per cent of the state's greenhouse emissions a report issued by non-profit organisation the Climate Group showed, while petrol was responsible for almost a quarter of the state's emissions last year.

The figures for the report were compiled from the group's Weekly Greenhouse Indicator, which tabulates Victoria's greenhouse emissions in real time. It shows the amount of greenhouse gases produced each week by petroleum, natural gas and electricity from coal. Last year, 61.2 million tonnes of greenhouse gases from coal-based electricity, 27.7 million tonnes from petroleum and 14.5 million from natural gas were propelled into the atmosphere.

The results have not surprised central Victoria's two leading climate change groups, who have attributed the pollution surge to the nation's continued reliance on coal. Mount Alexander Sustainability Group executive officer, Dean Bridgfoot said the report underlined an extremely worrying trend and all levels of government knew they needed to do something about climate change.

He said the figures should be a wake-up call to governments to introduce renewable energy as power sources to curb the rapidly rising energy usage and therefore higher greenhouse emissions. Central Victorian Greenhouse Alliance executive officer, Bronwen Machin attributed the high figures to the State Government's continued use of the Yallourn power station in Gippsland, which is one of the worst polluting in the nation.

But, acting Environment Minister Tim Holding has blamed energy use in the early 1990s for driving up the figures, despite State Government promises to cut the amount of greenhouse emissions by the year 2050 by 60 per cent of 2000 levels and other government figures that show energy use across the state has doubled since 1973.

"Since 1999 when the government really started responding aggressively to the challenge of climate change, we've seen Victoria really punching above its weight," he said yesterday.

The Weekly Greenhouse Indicator can be found online at: www.theclimate group.org/indicator