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 Amendments to effectively exempt small landfills from the Australian Government’s carbon pricing legislation have been welcomed by the national body for local government.
The Federal House of Representatives has voted to approve the carbon pricing mechanism outlined in the Federal Government’s Clean Energy Future legislation. The House voted 74 to 72 in favour of the package of 18 bills, which will see carbon priced at $23 per tonne from 1 July 2012, rising by 2.5 per cent each year during a three-year fixed price period until 1 July 2015, when the mechanism will transition to an emissions trading scheme with a price determined by the market.
Up to 500 Australian businesses will be required to pay for their carbon emissions under the plan, and much of the revenue collected will support investment in research, project development and employment growth in the clean energy industry. The bills will now pass into the Federal Senate for further debate.
The President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Mayor Genia McCaffery, said the Association welcomed Climate Change Minister Greg Combet’s preparedness to listen and give serious consideration to local government’s concerns.
“ALGA welcomes the outcomes of the Parliamentary process and the introduction of a market-based approach to carbon pricing. The amended legislation addresses local government’s concerns about the impact of a carbon price on small landfills, many of which are owned by councils,” Mayor McCaffery said.
The original draft legislation would have seen smaller landfill facilities with direct annual emissions of between 10,000 and 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year liable under the carbon price mechanism, where they operated within a ‘prescribed distance’ from a larger landfill with emissions of more than 25,000 tonnes. This was to address concerns that waste might be diverted from larger landfills that were subject to a carbon price.
“In its consultations with the Government, ALGA argued that due to existing waste disposal contracts, land use planning and other restrictions, the risk of diversion of waste was low,” Mayor McCaffery said.
“The Government has listened to this feedback and decided to set the prescribed distance at zero, which will mean that no landfill facilities with direct emissions of between 10,000 and 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide will be liable under the carbon pricing mechanism.”
“The Government also amended the bill to ensure that if the prescribed distance is increased in the future, small landfill facilities are only liable for emissions from new waste and not waste deposited before the change.”
“In addition, the amended legislation will also allow councils and other landfill operators to discharge a larger proportion of their emissions using credits issued under the Carbon Pricing Initiative (CFI). This will reduce the compliance burden on local councils and landfill operators who earn CFI credits by implementing landfill legacy emission avoidance projects.”
Mayor Genia McCaffery has also thanked Independent Tony Windsor for his advocacy of local government on this matter. |
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Constitutional recognition consultation process continues
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 The Federal Government’s Expert Panel on Constitutional recognition of Local Government is now halfway through its public consultation program in regional centres with meetings having been held in Dubbo (30 September), Karratha (5 October) and Wodonga (13 October). Further meetings are planned in Townsville (18 October), Launceston (25 October) and Murray Bridge (31 October). Members of the public who cannot attend the consultation meetings have the opportunity to make a submission to the Panel on this vital issue by 4 November. Details of the forthcoming consultation meetings can be found on the Panel’s website: www.localgovrecognition.gov.au
ALGA is currently preparing its own submission to the Panel which highlights our preference for a relatively simple and pragmatic change to Section 96 of the Constitution to remove any doubts about the ability of the Commonwealth to directly fund local government through programs such as Roads to Recovery; a program which helps councils to provide the services and infrastructure that local communities need. ALGA’s submission will be available on the ALGA website and the Expert Panel’s website once lodged.
The Panel, which is chaired by the Hon James Spigelman, a former Chief Justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court, has been tasked to consult with the community on the constitutional recognition of local government and to report back to the Government by the end of the year on the level of support and possible forms that recognition could take.
Submissions to the Panel can be made via the Expert Panel’s website, or by following the links on ALGA’s website at www.alga.asn.au. Submissions can either be lodged online or via the Secretariat’s postal address.
All submissions received by the Panel will be available for viewing at www.localgovrecognition.gov.au |
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 The 2011 National Local Roads and Transport Congress to be held in Mount Gambier on the 16-18 November is rapidly approaching, attracting wide interest from across the local government and transport industries.
The theme of the Congress is “Better Roads are Safer Roads” and an excellent line up of speakers has been confirmed.
Professor Ian Johnston, a leading figure in road safety and well known for a series of road safety television commercials, is among the key note speakers and will also be participating in a hypothetical session that asks “Are better roads really safer roads?”
The hypothetical session will also feature John Hartley, the NSW Police Assistant Commissioner representing the National Road Safety council, Lauchlan McIntosh from the Australasian College of Road Safety and Mayor of Mount Gambier, Steve Perryman. The session will be facilitated by Trudi Meakins, Executive Director of the South Australian Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure.
Two international speakers have been confirmed for the event. These include Grant Brennan, who will be addressing the Congress on arrangements in Canada for the funding of local roads, and Rodney Tolley, who will be outlining issues concerning pedestrians.
Alex Foulds, the General Manager responsible for the management of the Roads to Recovery Program, will be speaking on the latest thinking of the Government about the administration of the Program. Representatives of the Department of Infrastructure and Transport will also be attending and available to discuss the operation of the Program.
On the first day of the Congress, the ALGA Board will officially launch local government’s campaign for the renewal of the Roads to Recovery Program, which represents the primary source of Federal funding for local roads.
A package of material will be launched at the Congress and provided to delegates to support ALGA’s Roads to Recovery renewal campaign.
ALGA is encouraging as many councils as possible to participate in the launch of the Roads to Recovery campaign to send a strong and united message to the Federal Government and the Opposition about the importance of ongoing funds for local roads. The message has to be loud and clear: Roads to Recovery must be continued, made permanent and increased to a level that recognises the shortfall in funding of local roads of $1.2 billion annually.
ALGA has already received more than 250 registrations for the Congress but there are plenty of places still available. Registrations for the Congress can be made via the ALGA website.. |
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President's column
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 This week, I wrote to the Minister for Climate Change, Greg Combet, and Independent MP Tony Windsor, to thank them for championing amendments to the Australian Government’s clean energy legislative package to effectively rule out the application of a carbon price to small landfill facilities with annual emissions of less than 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide. This is a very positive result for many small councils whose landfills would have been included in the scheme, at major cost to those councils, purely on the basis of untested concerns about possible waste diversion from the larger landfills.
I have also congratulated the Government on successfully navigating the Clean Energy Bill and its amendments through the House of Representatives. The legislation will now go the Senate where passage seems likely given the support of the Greens.
I have been particularly appreciative of the efforts of Minister Combet and his staff and the officials of the Department of Climate Change, who have met and worked positively with myself and members of the ALGA Secretariat.
I believe that the package is an excellent outcome which will provide a strong basis for local government owner operators of landfills above 25,000 tonnes to proactively address their carbon emissions. I am particularly pleased with the changes to the Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) which now provide strong financial incentives for these councils to implement abatement programs.
I look forward to working with Minister Combet and the Government to ensure that issues affecting local government from the implementation of the legislation are addressed. The ALGA Secretariat will continue to work collaboratively with the Department of Climate Change to facilitate information and support to councils which will be covered by the scheme, in particular in helping them to understand their reporting requirement under the National Greenhouse Energy Reporting Scheme (NGERS) and the opportunities through this package.
The implementation of the carbon price is one part of the suite of actions aimed at addressing climate change. ALGA has also strongly articulated the need for a focus on adaptation measures to help local communities to adapt to the impacts of climate change and we will continue to advocate for such measures. The new Select Ministerial Council on Climate Change, which includes membership by ALGA, is an important forum in which to pursue that agenda and I look forward to representing the interests of local government and local communities on the Council.
Mayor Genia McCaffery
ALGA President
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Briefs
This week, ALGA was invited to participate in the ‘Creative Arts in the Regions’ workshop. It was organised by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in the lead up to the closing of submissions on the National Cultural Policy, on October 21.
The purpose of the workshop was to examine the most effective ways to attract theatre companies, orchestras and travelling art exhibitions to regional Australia.
John Bell, Artistic Director of Bell Shakespeare and former member of the Australia Council discussed both his life growing up in regional New South Wales as well as the efforts he went through to get support from business, private benefactors and Commonwealth and local government to get his productions beyond the capital cities. He noted the strong relationship that now exists between the Arts and local government and that any National Cultural Policy should support greater access to the Arts.
Methods for accurately reporting on the progress made towards mitigating climate change and environmental damage with sustainable business activity have been highlighted at the Australian Green Infrastructure Council’s National Conference in Melbourne.
The conference – titled Our Brave New World: Where Metrics Drive Sustainability – brought engineering, construction, finance and project management professionals together to preview the national sustainability Rating Tool for infrastructure developed by the Australian Green Infrastructure Council (AGIC).
At the event, AGIC Technical Manager Rick Walters outlined the scope and application of the Rating Tool and its support provisions, including for the availability of sustainable products for projects.
“This scheme is based on concepts of self-assessment, with assistance from AGIC and verification from independent reviewers,” Mr Walters said.
“It is above compliance, and better than ‘business as usual’ – we’re all on a journey towards greater sustainability achievements.”
Keynote presenter Kate Auty, Victorian Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability, provided an in-depth perspective on the need to combine long-term environmental sustainability with social sustainability in communities.
AGIC Chief Executive Doug Harland told attendees that the Council is now seeking final feedback on the Rating Tool before its official launch on 21 February at Parliament House in Canberra. Further information is available by contacting info@agic.net.au
In recognition of Mental Health Week, Minister for Human Services Tanya Plibersek
and Minister for Mental Health and Ageing Mark Butler said social workers were a
fundamental component of services offered by Centrelink during times of crisis.
“As well as advising people on what support payments the government can make
available, Centrelink social workers are trained to offer emotional support to Australians
experiencing significant hardship, ” Mr Butler said.
Ms Plibersek said the last summer’s natural disasters highlighted the important
support role undertaken by Centrelink’s social workers.
“These specialist staff played a frontline role in responding to emergencies and
disasters both in Australia and overseas, in addition to their regular work supporting
people in need.”
In 2010-2011 Centrelink social workers received some 368,000 referrals for
assistance. More than 10,800 of these were in relation to natural disasters and
emergencies including Cyclone Yasi, the floods in Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria and Western Australia, and the Western Australian bushfires.
She said the Department of Human Services also provided support for families going
through separation, working in partnership with external service providers such as
Mensline Australia, Family Relationship Services Australia, Financial Counselling
Australia and 1800RESPECT.
Visit www.humanservices.gov.au or call 13 1794 to find out more about the support services available.
Ride Beyond the Trauma motorcycle riders visited Parliament House in Canberra this week to raise
awareness of road safety and urge Australians to ‘Think for 6’.
The Ride Beyond the Trauma group was formed by SES volunteers who are deeply affected by the horrific accidents they are required to attend.
Their plea is for road users to ‘Think for 6’ seconds before taking an action such as speeding, talking on a mobile phone or texting while driving, so they can consider the dangers and think twice about taking the risk.
Their visit to Parliament House is part of their road trip through Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory.
Parliamentary Secretary Catherine King commended the group for taking the initiative to spread the
message of road safety: “Each year about 1,400 people lose their lives and around 32,000 are hospitalised as a result of crashes on our roads.”
“The Government applauds volunteer groups like ‘Ride Beyond the Trauma’ and the State Emergency Services who give their own time to help reduce the impact of road trauma.”
The Ride Beyond the Trauma motorcycle riders are travelling from Pakenham to Toowoomba and will be stopping in towns along the way, visiting schools and victims of road trauma and spreading the ‘think for six’ message.
For further information on the ride please see: www.facebook.com/ridebeyondthetrauma
According to a survey by according Ernst & Young, Australian companies have become more cautious and prefer to preserve capital, in the face of the global uncertainty and the debt crisis.
About 30 per cent of companies surveyed were holding high levels of cash, which is up from 8 per cent in April, and significantly higher than 19 per cent of global companies.
``Global market volatility and economic uncertainty in recent months appear to have unnerved Australasian businesses, despite our sound local economic fundamentals,'' E&Y Oceania managing partner Graeme Browning said.
He warned that with companies more risk averse, they might be ``too slow to act or may not transact at all. Those who stand on the sidelines risk handing the advantage to competitors''.
Mr Browning said Australian businesses must get used to market volatility as only the ``fittest and fastest'' companies would make the most of opportunities that arose in uncertain times.
E&Y's global capital confidence barometer found that 41 per cent of firms were planning to pursue acquisitions over the next 12 months, down significantly from 46 per cent in April.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the seasonally adjusted Australian unemployment rate was 5.2 per cent in September.
The ABS reported the number of people employed increased by 20,400 to 11,451,200 in September.
The increase in employment was driven by an increase in full-time employment, up 10,800 people to 8,044,200, and an increase in part-time employment, up 9,600 people to 3,407,100.
The number of people unemployed decreased by 3,800 people to 634,200 in September, the ABS reported.
The ABS monthly aggregate hours worked series showed a decrease in September, down 9.4 million hours to 1,615.1 million hours.
The ABS reported a labour force participation rate in September of 65.6 per cent.
More details are in the September 2011 issue of Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0), available for free download from the ABS website: www.abs.gov.au
Australia has won its bid to host the International Water Association’s World Water Congress in Brisbane in 2016.
Australian Water Association (AWA) Chief Executive Tom Mollenkopf said that the water sector is “extremely excited” by the prospect of holding this event in Queensland.
“This event gives Australia enormous opportunities to showcase our leading-edge research and management practices in water, and to ensure that we continue our history of learning from the best the rest of the world has to offer while also making our own,” said Mr Mollenkopf.
“With around 4,000 mostly international delegates and many more participants in the exhibition and side events, the 2016 World Water Congress will deliver an incredibly stimulating and vibrant event to Brisbane.”
The AWA will partner with the International Water Association (IWA) to deliver the event.
The IWA Water Congress was last held in Australia ten years ago. Recent Congresses have been located in Montreal (2010), Vienna (2008) and Beijing (2006). The next World Congress will be in Buson, Korea in September 2012.
As part of the Supported Accommodation Innovation Fund (SAIF) funding round, the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) strongly advises applicants to be aware of their home state or territory’s cut-off dates. State and territory governments will require sufficient time to consider and prioritise projects for endorsement and requests for ongoing support funding. State and territory endorsement of projects is mandatory.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to speak with their state or territory contact (available on saif.govspace.gov.au) as early as possible.
The following states and territories have advised of their application due dates:
Northern Territory 14 November 2011
New South Wales 18 November 2011
South Australia 18 November 2011
Australian Capital Territory 25 November 2011
Queensland 30 November 2011
The SAIF funding round, allowing eligible organisations to apply for a capital grant to build innovative supported accommodation for people with disability, opened on 5 September 2011 and will remain open until 20 January 2012. This $60 million initiative, spanning three years, will go towards addressing the shortfall in supported accommodation places and respite for people with disability and their families and carers by providing up to 150 new places.
For further information and updates, or to ask a question, please visit saif.govspace.gov.au. Application documents are available under the Grants and Funding tab on the FaHCSIA website: www.fahcsia.gov.au/sa/disability/funding/saif
Volunteering Australia is inviting communities to complete a National Survey of Volunteering Issues.
Volunteering Australia says that the survey is a critical tool to help drive and shape organisation’s policies and advocacy for the coming year. Conducted annually for five years, the data has been used by many sources to influence decision makers about key issues affecting volunteering.
This year, Volunteering Australia is giving more emphasis to asking what priority volunteers, organisations and companies give to particular issues, what would make a difference, and what makes volunteering work well.
Volunteering Australia values the significant involvement and contribution made by volunteers through local government in metropolitan, regional and remote communities across Australia. It also recognises the important role local government plays in engaging and supporting volunteers in these communities.
To complete the survey, simply click on the link that applies to you and your involvement:
If you are a COMPANY - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NSVI_Companies
If you are a VOLUNTEER - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NSVI_Volunteers
If you are an NOT-FOR-PROFIT or GOVERNMENT ORGANISATION - https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NSVI_VIOs
The survey will be open from 10 October to 6 November 2011. The results will be released on International Volunteers Day on the 5 December 2011.
Families and separated parents are being reminded to lodge outstanding tax returns with the
Australian Taxation Office ahead of the 31 October deadline for PAYG lodgements.
Minister for Human Services Tanya Plibersek said that it was important to remember the benefits of lodging a tax return for Centrelink and Child Support payments at the end of the financial year.
“Centrelink needs annual income information from tax returns to correctly calculate entitlements
for family assistance payments. This information is then compared to any annual income estimate
provided at the start and during the financial year,” Ms Plibersek said.
“Many parents who receive Family Tax Benefit (FTB) payments in instalments may be eligible for
supplement payments, which are only available after parents have lodged their tax returns and
their payment has been balanced.
“Every year Centrelink reconciles the FTB payments of around two million families. The majority of
these families are required to lodge their tax returns.”
FTB supplements can be up to $726.35 per child for FTB Part A payments, and $354.05 per
family for those on FTB Part B payments.
For more information about Family Tax Benefit and lodging a tax return, visit
www.centrelink.gov.au or call the Family Assistance line on 13 61 50.
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Welcome to Legalwise Seminars |
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Welcome to Legalwise Seminars. Join us in November in Canberra, Melbourne, Perth or Sydney for a selection of seminars developed for those working in or with government.
Click on the links below for the program details.
CPD Compliance for Government Lawyers
Canberra - Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Melbourne - Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Perth - Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Sydney - Thursday, 24 November 2011
Litigating Contract Disputes
Brisbane - Thursday, 17 November 2011
Melbourne - Tuesday, 15 November 2011
Sydney - Thursday, 24 November 2011
Contaminated Sites
Brisbane - Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Melbourne - Tuesday, 15 November 2011
Sydney - Tuesday, 22 November 2011
Carbon Pricing: Legal Risks, Obligations and Opportunities
Melbourne - Tuesday, 15 November 2011
Perth - Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Sydney - Tuesday, 22 November 201
Fraud and Corruption in Government
Sydney - Thursday, 24 November 2011
Managing Government Contracts
Canberra - Thursday, 10 November 2011
Statutory Interpretation
Canberra - Thursday, 10 November 2011
Structuring Major Projects
Perth - Thursday, 17 November 2011
Year-in-Review: Retrospect and Prospect
Perth - Friday, 18 November 2011
Should you wish to browse our selection of November seminars follow this link. |
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SUSTAINABILITY: YOU UNDERSTAND THE URGENCY, BUT WHAT ABOUT EVERYONE ELSE?
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EARLY BIRD RATE ENDS 21ST OCTOBER
The 2011 Behaviour Change for Sustainability National Congress will be held in Sydney on 10th - 11th November - please click here to view the full agenda.
As a sustainability professional, you are clearly committed to moving our world into a more secure future.
But how do we achieve the positive, wide-scale behaviour change we so urgently need? We'll be tackling practical challenges, grappling with unanswered questions, building partnerships and gathering a pool of resources to help us make substantive progress in our work.
Presenting their ideas for exploration are:
- Professor Garry Egger, author of Planet Obesity: How we are eating ourselves and our planet to death
- Patricia Rogers, Professor in Public Sector Evaluation, RMIT
- Tom Crompton, Change Strategist, WWF (UK)
- Professor Ian Lowe, President of the Australian Conservation Foundation
Also includes a specially commissioned film by Ed Gillespie, Co-Founder of Futerra (UK)
Key themes include:
- Complexity theory and how we develop and fund adaptive, agile approaches to behaviour change
- Learnings from the health sector and ways that human health and climate change initiatives can work together
- Partnership building, whole of community approaches, and how we can achieve more by working together
- Communication and the importance of story in reaching past the converted
- New evaluation methods and knowing the difference we make
Presented in partnership with the NSW Office of Environment & Heritage
Developed in collaboration with some of Australia's most active and committed sustainability practitioners
Please contact Zaf Makdum on 02 9555 4203 or email her at zaf@3pillarsnetwork.com.au
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