Vernon: Holes in Coalition's direct action plan

Cowper candidate for the Greens, Carol Vernon, said the Coalition's direct action climate change policy is merely another "great big tax" for Australians.

Greens' candidate for Cowper, Carol Vernon, has serious reservations about the Coalition's climate change policy. Picture: Leigh Jensen

EVER since the carbon pricing scheme was introduced by the Gillard Government, opposition leader Tony Abbott has called the policy "a great big tax".

Cowper candidate for the Greens, Carol Vernon, said the Coalition's direct action climate change policy is merely another "great big tax" waiting to be imposed on the Australian public.

Mrs Vernon said the Coalition's direct action climate change policy will cost the average family $1,200 in tax each year, or a little more than $23 a week.

A central pillar of the direct action policy is a $2.55 billion emission reduction fund to pay for companies and landowners to reduce emissions through measures such as soil carbon, energy efficiency and waste coal mine gas projects.

"Most of those funds will be paid to the big polluters to encourage them to reduce their carbon emissions," Mrs Vernon said.

"Some will be used to finance other schemes that Australian scientists have long stated will have dubious value in moderating climate change."

The Coalition policy suggests up to 85 million tonnes per year of carbon dioxide cuts will come from projects such as storing CO2 in soil as well as revegetation.

Last month, climate change department officials told a Senate estimates hearing that the proposed projects are currently expected to deliver only 3.7 million tonnes a year of emissions cuts by 2020.

Australia will need to reduce its emissions by 160 million tonnes from 2000 levels to meet an unconditional, bipartisan target of a five per cent cut in greenhouse gases by 2020.

Mrs Vernon said a large vote in the Senate for the Greens on September 14 is the best chance to stop such a policy going through unopposed should the Coalition win the upcoming election.

"A strong Greens' presence in the Senate will protect families from this 'great big tax', push for legislation to moderate global warming and protect your children from even more droughts, floods, tidal surges, hurricanes and bushfires," she said.