Minister Barr: Canberra to be 100% renewable by 2025
- Written by ACT Government
Released 22/08/2015
Canberra will be the first capital and the largest city in Australia to be powered by 100 per cent renewable energy by 2025.
The commitment I’ll announce in my address to the ACT Labor Conference today will put the ACT at the global forefront for a response to climate change – building on our current agenda which will see 90 percent of our energy needs delivered through renewable sources by 2020.
We can do this. We have shown it’s possible – now we have one small step left. 100 percent renewable energy will drive further jobs growth in our research and corporate sectors.
We’ve already seen a 400 percent increase in renewable energy jobs in the past five years, and there will be more to come.
Canberra can and should be a beacon for everyone who realises the world must act decisively now to stave off a future of catastrophic climate change.
Our policy is a stark contrast to that of the Liberal Party and the Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who insists that coal is good for humanity. As the Federal Liberal Government denies the existence of climate change, the ACT Labor government is doing everything we can to ensure future generations aren’t burdened with the consequences of global warming.
A further step I will announce today is that the Government will continue to divest the ACT investment portfolio of high-carbon emitting companies and sectors – all without costing the Canberra community one cent in lower returns.
For a city striving to become the ‘knowledge capital’, this policy is the right thing to do. ACT Labor has a vision for Canberra that centres around job creation, world-class education, social inclusion and delivering the quality health care Canberrans deserve.
- Statement ends -
Section: Andrew Barr, MLA | Media Releases
