Eco action an earner

Courier Mail
Thursday 30/10/2008 Page: 23

NATIONS that move early to combat climate change will receive a 15 per cent discount on their carbon reduction costs, new modelling reveals. A long-awaited study from the federal Treasury to be released today shows that acting swiftly on global warming could be a big money spinner. In a major speech today in Brisbane, Treasurer Wayne Swan will seize on the new study to argue Australia must be a climate change leader. "The message is clear: acting early is an economic imperative," Mr Swan will say in his speech.

"The modelling suggests that, by 2050, GDP costs for economies that act early are 15 per cent lower than countries that wait for the world to act together." The modelling is great ammunition for the Federal Government as it pushes for a 2010 start for an emissions trading scheme while the Opposition wants it delayed.

The 2010 start date has come under increasing fire with the economic crisis. The Treasury modelling argues that countries that hold off miss out on lucrative global investment in low emissions technology. Mr Swan will also offer a lifeline to the Queensland coal industry, saying an emissions scheme is not necessarily bad news. "Some of Australia's emissions-intensive trade exposed sectors, such as coal, are likely to become more competitive, and increase their share of global trade," he says.

The Treasurer will also ramp up his language against global capitalism, saying the market has failed by not putting a price on carbon. "The consequence is dangerous climate change, which threatens to slow economic growth and imperil our way of life," he says. It comes as Climate Minister Penny Wong will today announce Queensland's Griffith University will spearhead new research on how climate change will affect water resources, human health, emergency services, infrastructure and biodiversity.

Senator Wong said the $10 million four-year project would foster critical research into the effects of climate change. "Taking action now to reduce the future impact of climate change on our communities, environment and industries is a critical pillar of our strategy," she said.