Australia Can Resolve Domestic Emissions Challenges with Natural Gas
Gas Energy Australia (GEA) has launched its vision for Australia’s energy — 2030 Vision for Cleaner, Cheaper, Australian Fuels (CNG and LNG. After 12 months consultation, GEA’s 2030 Vision includes a new 10 Point Action Plan for industry and government to improve the take-up rate of Australian natural gas. Substituting gas for dirtier, imported fuels like diesel can cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 25%, according to Gas Energy Australia’s CEO, Mr John Griffiths.
“In Australia we are close to being totally dependent on higher emitting and higher polluting foreign imported oil for many of our domestic energy needs. It’s crazy, when we could be using cleaner, cheaper, locally produced Australian natural gas to power our trucks, heavy vehicles, mining equipment and off-grid generation”, he said.
Mr Griffiths called on politicians and industry to look a bit closer to home than the UN’s Climate Change Conference in Paris for Australian “economy-friendly” solutions. “We have a ready-made Australian solution to a global problem. The answer is cleaner, cheaper, Australian produced natural gas fuels”, he said.
According to the Vision document, “Australia has only 0.3% of the world’s oil reserves 13 and in 2012-13 was importing 533,000 barrels of oil, even though we have almost a 200 year supply of natural gas.”
“According to the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics (BREE), Australian natural gas fuels have a low cost of production for the foreseeable future and are better for air quality, benefit the environment, improve health outcomes, and generate jobs here in Australia – much more innovative than importing higher polluting diesel!”
GEA says the Australian government needs to diversify its alt-fuel mix. The lower emissions agenda has been dominated by solar and wind power even though they are not always the most suitable option for regional communities, heavy freight and industry tasks.
“We must act now or risk losing the opportunity this natural gas fuel bounty offers and before more expensive and less effective policy settings are entrenched.”
