Environment Bulletin - September 2022
Australia – Greenhouse gas emissions reduction target to be enshrined in legislation
The Australian Government has introduced the Climate Change Bill 2022 to Parliament, which will enshrine Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets in law. The proposed legislation will also require the Minister for Climate Change to submit an annual statement on the progress towards meeting these targets, and will require the independent Climate Change Authority to provide advice on this progress and any new targets.
View the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water’s media release here.
Australian Capital Territory – Laws to protect trees from development released
The ACT Government has released the Urban Forest Bill 2022 which seeks to protect Canberra’s trees from the impacts of development. The new Bill will repeal and replace the Tree Protection Act 2005, which currently only applies to leased land, to improve tree protection on both public and private land and encourage the shared care of Canberra’s trees.
Read the ACT government’s media release here.
Australia – Electric Car Discount Bill introduced
The Australian Government has introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount) Bill 2022 into Parliament, which aims to reduce the cost of electrical vehicles by removing fringe benefits tax. The exemption proposed by the Bill will apply to battery electric cars, hydrogen fuel cell electric cars and plugin hybrid electric cars.