www.abc.net.au
Jul 25, 2010
Green groups have criticised the Federal Government's decision to pull funding from solar power schemes in order to pay for its plan to remove old cars from Australia's roads. If re-elected, the Government says it will offer owners of pre-1995 vehicles a $2,000 rebate for upgrading to more fuel efficient cars. But solar power advocates, the Greens and the Coalition have slammed the proposal, as more than half of the funding for it will be taken from the Government's solar infrastructure program.
Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society chief executive John Grimes says it makes no sense. "You're taking money away from a 100% emission free electricity generation program and putting it into reducing emissions from cars - but reducing them, not eliminating them", he said. "Infrastructure projects and clean-and-green collar jobs of the future have now been either scrapped or scaled back". The Greens say they support the idea but not the way it is funded. They say funding should instead come from fossil fuel subsidies given to big polluters.
The Opposition's Environment Spokesman, Greg Hunt, says the policy could have a damaging economic impact. He says the program will effectively take money away from Australian infrastructure and give it to foreign car manufacturers. "In Germany and in the United States, the cash for clunkers program has been a disaster", he said. "It created a boom and then a bust. This is exactly what happened with the pinkbatts program, a boom and then a bust. "The Prime Minister must explain today why she is taking $220 million from the solar flagships fund for Australian renewable energy and instead she's going to pay 90% of that money [to companies] such as Mercedes, such as BMW".
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