Clean Energy Future

The carbon price will be accompanied by assistance supporting communities, to help them adjust and lower their carbon pollution.

Support for communities and regions

A central element in the Australian approach to economic reform over the past three decades has been structural adjustment assistance – government help to ease the transition for regions and communities. The Government will maintain this approach under the clean energy plan, setting aside $200 million in funding for regions in the event that they are strongly affected by the introduction of a carbon price.

The Department of Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government will monitor the socio-economic impacts of the carbon price on regions to identify areas where impacts are acute and structural adjustment assistance may be required. Funding will support regional communities on a case-by-case basis. Examples of programs that may be supported through this program include support for displaced workers and their families, support for affected small businesses, community development programs and economic diversification programs.

Supporting jobs in industries with a strong regional presence

Some regional communities which have industries that produce considerable carbon pollution may need assistance as Australia transitions to a clean energy economy. These areas will benefit from the Government’s Jobs and Competitiveness Package–an ongoing program worth $9.2 billion over the first three years of the carbon pricing mechanism. This package will safeguard jobs in industries which face international competition and produce a lot of pollution. Regional communities will also be supported through tailored programs worth $500 million for the steel industry, food processors and metal foundries and forgers.

Treasury modelling shows that with a carbon price the mining sector will still experience strong growth and that it will increase as a proportion of the economy over the decade to 2020. Some individual coal mines, including mines in regional New South Wales and Queensland, have high levels of fugitive emissions and may face larger impacts. Workers and local communities relying on these mines will be supported through a $1.3 billion Coal Sector Jobs Package.

Low Carbon Communities

The Low Carbon Communities program helps communities and councils improve energy efficiency. Funding for the program will be increased from $80 million to $330 million. The program will be expanded to include two new initiatives aimed at improving the energy efficiency of low income households. The Low Income Energy Efficiency program will provide grants to pilot approaches that assist low income households to reduce their energy costs. The second initiative will fund a new Household Energy and Financial Sustainability Scheme to support low income households to improve their energy and financial sustainability. Grants will also be available for local councils and community organisations to retrofit or upgrade community-use facilities. This will cut their energy costs and serve as demonstration projects to promote energy efficiency in the community.

Delivering clean energy to remote communities

The Remote Indigenous Energy Program will help Indigenous communities access clean, affordable and reliable 24-hour power supplies. It will help communities to manage their energy efficiently and use it to contribute to improvements in health, education and long-term economic viability. Over four years, the $40 million program will build on the success of the former Renewable Remote Power Generation Program. It will provide additional financial support to install renewable energy generation systems like solar panels and wind turbines in around 55 remote Indigenous communities. This new program will also include training in power system maintenance and information to support households and communities manage their energy.

This program ensures remote communities will also be part of the transformation to a clean energy future.

Creating opportunities on the land through the Carbon Farming Initiative

The Carbon Farming Initiative will provide new economic rewards for farmers and landholders that take steps to reduce carbon pollution. It will do this by creating credits for each tonne of carbon pollution which can be stored or reduced on the land. Farmers and land managers will be able to generate income from credits for actions including reforestation and revegetation, reduced methane emissions from livestock digestion, reduced fertiliser emissions and native forest protection.

Through the Indigenous Carbon Farming Fund, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders will receive assistance to participate in the Carbon Farming Initiative. Indigenous Australians manage around 20 per cent of Australia’s land mass, drawing on traditional knowledge of the landscape and its responses to fire, flooding and drought. Funding will also be provided for specialists to work with Indigenous communities on carbon farming projects.

For more information about helping our communities and regions, see:

• Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport

Regional Australia
The carbon pricing mechanism will unlock opportunities for regional Australia to capitalise on the development of Australia’s world-class energy reserves and share in $10 billion of new investment through the Government’s new Clean Energy Finance Corporation.

Local government
Local governments are actively building resilience to climate change through effective planning. The expanded Low Carbon Communities program will help local governments reduce their energy costs through energy efficiency upgrades in community-use buildings and facilities.