Chris Bowen begins talks on emissions cuts for 215 biggest polluters | NickToscano1
Australia’s largest greenhouse gas emitters could be required to slash their carbon footprint by up to 6 per cent a year under a key plank of the Albanese government’s campaign to combat climate change.
The Albanese government will begin extensive industry consultations across the country on Thursday to seek feedback on how the mechanism should be designed.Among the key areas of consultation will be setting “baselines” for new and existing facilities and determining indicative rates for baseline reductions.
“Building on the existing safeguard mechanism is an obvious place for any government to start,” Australian Industry Group chief Innes Willox said last year. “Industry has long expected that sooner or later baselines would ratchet down to drive abatement ... making that reduction firm and predictable can help underpin transformative industry investments.”