Victoria's Premier Daniel Andrews today established a powerful new ministerial post that will control the state's response to climate change, the operation of its energy industry and its approach to environmental regulation.
A review of EPA Victoria has recommended two new environmental Acts, a new general duty to minimise harm from pollution and waste, and a tougher approach to enforcement.
Victoria's Climate Change Act gives it a built-in advantage in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but other states could explore using their EPA licensing systems to achieve cuts, says Baker & McKenzie's Martijn Wilder.
EPA Victoria needs explicit powers to deliver emissions cuts, all major departments should have climate plans that guide decision-making and third parties should have rights to launch court challenges, according to a landmark legislative review released today.
Two leading Australian energy economists have recommended a reverse auction to manage closure of unwanted brown coal-fired power plants, and the UK government has set a schedule for the end of coal-fired power in that country.
State governments are again active on climate change and this time around they are doing things differently, says ClimateWorks Australia chief executive Anna Skarbek.