Independent Review of Australian Carbon Credit Units: Submissions open

On 29 August 2022, the independent expert panel (Review Panel) who is reviewing the integrity of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) under the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) began seeking submissions from a diverse range of stakeholders. The Review Panel is seeking feedback on the integrity of ACCUs and the broader impacts of activities incentivised under the ACCU scheme framework.

Snapshot

• The purpose of the review is to ensure the strength and credibility of ACCUs and the Australian carbon crediting framework and that these mechanisms will be widely supported by participants, purchasers and the broader community.
• The review is also intended to ensure the efficacy of the system in contributing to Australia’s emissions reduction targets, strengthening the carbon market and supporting reforms to industrial facilities covered by the Safeguard Mechanism.

The scope of the review

The Clean Energy Regulator supports reductions in Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by crediting Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs) issued under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 (CFI Act) and purchasing ACCUs through the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF). Such reductions help meet Australia’s emissions reductions targets of 43 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030, and net zero emissions by 2050.

The independent review is being conducted in response to concerns recently raised in relation to Australia’s carbon crediting system. These concerns include the integrity of the crediting system’s key methods and the ACCUs issued under it. In response, the Review Panel has been established with terms of reference that go to matters including governance and integrity of offsets. Specifically, the terms of reference regard:

• the integrity of ACCUs issued under the CFI Act, with specific reference to the appropriateness of scheme governance, the offsets integrity standards of methods by which ACCUs are generated and any other matters the panel considers relevant to the integrity of ACCUs; and
• the broader impacts of activities incentivised under Australia’s carbon crediting framework, including the appropriateness of current processes and requirements to manage negative social, environmental and economic impacts, the extent to which carbon projects support positive environmental, social and economic outcomes, opportunities to maximise non-carbon benefits of projects (co-benefits) and requirements for the use of ACCUs under Climate Active.

Information on submissions

The Review Panel has issued a consultation paper, that seeks input from a broad range of submitters.

The Review Panel will use submissions to inform the recommendations it provides in its report to government. The Review Panel invites suggestions on how the ACCU scheme might be improved, including practical, relevant examples from other schemes or policy areas. To guide submissions, the Review Panel outlined a broad range of issues for potential consideration, including:

• experiences with the ERF scheme;
• governance of the ERF scheme;
• rigour and integrity of ERF methods and projects;
• co-benefits and other impacts of the ERF scheme;
• relationship to voluntary Climate Active certification; and
• the future of the ERF scheme.

Next steps

Submissions close on 26 September 2022 and can be submitted here. Submissions will be published on the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water website.

The Review Panel will provide the government a report with recommendations by 31 December 2022.

By Kathryn Pacey, Partner, Peter Briggs, Partner, Heidi Asten, Partner, Melanie Debenham, Partner, Charlotte Traves, Paralegal.