“If the Prime Minister adopts either of the two most likely options proposed by Dick Warburton’s review, he will be marked forever as a leader with a blind ideological vendetta to destroy policies which benefit the environment,” said Ben Pearson, Head of Program for Greenpeace Australia Pacific.
“With over 95 per cent of Australians in favour of renewable energy[1], Prime Minister Abbott’s attempts to weaken Australia’s Renewable Energy Target is surely his most unpopular and backward-looking policy yet.
The Renewable Energy Target (RET) has generated more than 24,000 jobs, reduced Australia’s carbon pollution by 22 million tonnes and by 2020 will reduce average electricity bills by $50 a year.
“It’s very clear that damaging the RET only benefits the fossil fuel industry. Retailers such as Origin, AGL and Energy Australia stand to profit billions of dollars in the RET is weakened or abolished.[2]
Greenpeace has produced The Green Electricity Guide to help inform consumers which electricity providers really are as green as they say they are. ‘The Dirty Three’ (Origin, AGL, Energy Australia) control over 77 per cent of the household electricity market, but are ranked amongst the worst retailers in The Green Electricity Guide.
“More and more Australians are realising there are alternatives to three big energy retailers - Origin, AGL and Energy Australia - and are making the switch to a new breed of renewable energy based companies such as Powershop, Diamond , Momentum and Red Energy.
The organisation GetUp! has already shifted over 2,000 people to a greener alternative in Victoria alone in the past few months.
For more information or interviews: Alison Orme Greenpeace Australia Pacific 0432 332 104
[1] Newspoll published in The Australian 20 August 2014.
[2] See The Climate Institute / WWF / ACF report ‘Who Really Benefits from Reducing the Renewable Energy Target?’