Growing a climate-ready economy

4.1

Attract investment and jobs by using our clean energy advantage and making climate change projections easily available and accessible for investors

Ongoing

Coordinator-General

DPAC (TCCO)

The Office of the Coordinator-General continues to promote the renewable energy sector in Tasmania across a wide variety of sectors.

The State’s renewable energy advantage is frequently highlighted to potential investors through marketing collateral, presentations and tailored responses.

The Coordinator-General is working across a number of renewable energy projects, including wind, hydrogen and solar, providing support to project proponents as required.

Ongoing

4.2

Work with farmers to reduce fertiliser-related emissions and costs by continuing to deliver the Fert$mart program in partnership with DairyTas

Complete

DPAC (TCCO)

To date, 200 Fert$mart plans covering 60,000 hectares have been developed for Tasmanian dairy farms. This represents nearly 50 per cent of the State's dairy farms.

The Tasmanian Government has provided financial assistance of $27,500 to local farmers to install the infrastructure necessary to implement the effluent management component of their Fert$mart plans. This funding provided the momentum for practical on-farm infrastructure works totalling $431,000, and an additional 230 hectares of land being irrigated with effluent and an additional seven megalitres of effluent storage.

Complete

4.3

Undertake a business resource efficiency program to assist small and medium-sized businesses to reduce their emissions and operating costs through resource efficiency initiatives, and building industry capacity

Complete

DPAC (TCCO)

State Growth

Eleven businesses across a range of sectors completed the Business Resource Efficiency Program. Waste audits for each participating business have been completed. The audits identified waste minimisation projects for each business. Businesses have worked together through facilitated workshops to implement their waste minimisation projects. Case studies, fact sheets, videos and audit tools are published on the TCCO website.

Complete

4.4

Work with the agricultural sector to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions by updating the online energy self-audit tool and developing guidance materials

Complete

DPIPWE

DPAC (TCCO)

An interactive tool has been developed to assist farms with energy management and energy self-audits. Features of the tool include identifying energy use, setting benchmarks and targets, and implementing energy and cost saving measures. The online calculator tool that complements this manual is also available to aid in conducting energy self-audits of farms.

Complete

4.5

Support the resilience of small- and medium-sized businesses to extreme events by extending the Disaster Planning and Recovery for Tasmanian Businesses project, which involves workshops and tailored resources

Complete

DPAC (TCCO)

State Growth

This action was completed in 2017-18, with a series of workshops across regional Tasmania, supporting 48 Tasmanian businesses to undertake business continuity planning to prepare for and respond to extreme climatic events.

Complete

4.6

Provide information on climate change risks and opportunities through Enterprise Suitability Mapping to support future decision making for the agricultural sector

Expected completion FY 2020-21

DPIPWE

DPAC (TCCO)

Provision of information on risks and opportunities through Enterprise Suitability mapping to support decision making for the agricultural sector. Enterprise Suitability layers for six crops (Barley, Poppies, Potatoes, Sparkling Wine, Table Wine and Wheat) have been produced and are available through LISTmap and Open data.

Nearing completion

4.7

Develop a new waste management action plan for Tasmania which includes a focus on emissions reduction

Expected completion FY 2018-19

DPIPWE

The draft Plan was released in June 2019 for public consultation. The submissions are published on the DPIPWE website. Work on the key initiatives of the Plan are underway. The Container Refund Scheme is an important priority, with commencement anticipated for 2022, and the introduction in 2021 of a levy on waste being dumped in landfill. The Waste Action Plan will also be the means for delivering Tasmania’s obligations under the National Waste Policy and the recent focus on banning the export of certain wastes from the country.

Nearing completion

4.8

Deliver the five proposed Tranche II irrigation development schemes, and investigate the feasibility of Tranche III schemes, to provide water surety for the agricultural sector in a changing climate

Ongoing

Tasmanian Irrigation

DPIPWE

The transformation in Tasmanian regional, large-scale irrigation development has made highly reliable water supplies available for growth in agriculture.

The delivery of the Tranche II irrigation schemes is largely complete, with all five schemes now operational. Work to develop the ten projects of Tranche III – the Pipeline to Prosperity program - is continuing. The first project is expected to commence construction in the first half of 2021.

Ongoing

4.9

Invest in skills to prepare our industry sectors, regional communities and workforce for a changing climate

Ongoing

State Growth

Skills Tasmania continues to provide subsidised training in agriculture, aquaculture and primary industries, with environmental sustainability and climate change being an important context for the delivery of nationally recognised training for these sectors.

The Energising Tasmania Training Fund delivers subsidised training and workforce development activities to support Tasmania in developing a skilled workforce needed for the Battery of the Nation initiative and more broadly in the renewable energy sector.

Ongoing