Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Bill 2011

The majority voted against an amendment introduced by Senator Simon Birmingham, which means that it was unsuccessful. The motion was:

(2) Clause 122, page 154 (after line 30), after subclause (3), insert:(3A) In the case of a project which was accredited under the Greenhouse Friendly program at the time that program was terminated—if a methodology determination is made on or before 30 June 2012, the determination may be expressed to have come into force at the start of 1 January 2008.

Senator Birmingham explained that this amendment would provide "continuity, certainty and hopefully mak[e] sure that projects that operate under Greenhouse Friendly can continue to operate under this new scheme".(Read Senator Birmingham's full explanation of his amendment and the associated debate here, after 1:21 pm. )

Background to the bill

The bill was introduced as part of a package of three related bills to establish a voluntary carbon offset scheme, to be called the Carbon Farming Initiative.(The other two related bills were the Carbon Credits (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2011 and the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Bill 2011. ) Introducing this scheme was a Government election commitment. The bills digest explains that the Initiative will be "a voluntary scheme that aims to provide incentives for the agricultural and forestry sectors to minimise carbon emissions or maximise carbon sequestration by altering their forestry and agricultural practices".

The bill's stated objectives are:

• to implement certain commitments Australia has under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol to it
• to create incentives for carbon-abatement projects
• to increase carbon abatement while still protecting Australia’s natural environment and enhancing resilience to climate change impacts.(Read more about the bill in its bills digest.)