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

Coordinator-General

DPAC (TCCO)

The Office of the Coordinator-General continues to promote Tasmania’s renewable clean energy advantage across industries, and to a wide variety of domestic and international proponents.

The Office of the Coordinator-General focus includes promoting the State as an ideal location for:

• investors to establish renewable energy generation projects; and
• industries to utilise our renewable energy as a key input into their industrial or commercial processes.

The Office is currently working with and supporting a wide variety of proponents across several renewable energy projects including hydrogen, wind and solar.

The State’s renewable energy advantage and climate change projections continue to be highlighted in a range of communications that the Office produces; including the recently released “Southern Tasmanian Advantage” prospectus which highlights the role of the Tasmanian Climate Change Office and the Tasmanian Climate Change Action Plan, providing pathways for investors to obtain further information.

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

DPAC (TCCO)

Two hundred 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 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

DPAC (TCCO)

State Growth

Eleven businesses across a range of sectors completed the Business Resource Efficiency Program. The aim of the program was to: help small- to medium-sized Tasmanian businesses reduce their consumption of resources, and minimise waste streams; reduce operating costs and drive productivity gains; and provide businesses with practical and tailored information about ways to improve their resource efficiency. Businesses have worked together through facilitated workshops to implement their waste minimisation projects. Case studies, fact sheets, videos and audit tools are available 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

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

DPAC (TCCO)

State Growth

A series of workshops were held 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

DPIPWE

DPAC (TCCO)

Provision of information on risks and opportunities through Enterprise Suitability mapping to support decision making for the agricultural sector.

Enterprise Suitability map layers for six crops (Barley, Poppies, Potatoes, Sparkling Wine, Table Wine and Wheat) have been produced for years 2030 and 2050 (based on Climate Futures for Tasmania projections). The outputs are available through LISTmap and Open data.

Complete

4.7

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

DPIPWE

Tabling of legislation to implement the key initiatives of the waste action plan (Container Refund Scheme and Waste Levy) is expected during the second half of 2021. The levy legislation has been through a public consultation phase and the Container Refund Scheme opened for public consultation in June 2021.

Complete

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

Tasmanian Irrigation

DPIPWE

Deliveries of water from the Scottsdale Irrigation Scheme (the fifth and final Tranche II scheme) commenced in November 2020.

Tasmanian Irrigation is well advanced in designing the first five Tranche III Pipeline to Prosperity irrigation schemes and has commenced planning for the remaining five schemes under the program.

The Tasmanian Government has committed $113.7 million to Tranche III and is seeking up to $100 million in additional funding from the Australian Government, on top of the $100 million in Commonwealth funds secured to date.

Complete

4.9

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

State Growth

The Energising Tasmania project is supporting Tasmania’s transition to zero emissions training through investments in workforce development, training, market development and the Energising Tasmania Training Fund.

The Energising Tasmania Training Fund is fully subsidised training for several qualifications, including renewable energy pathways.

Projects funded by Energising Tasmania include a regional workforce development plan for Circular Head and development of an entry level qualification for future hydrogen and renewable energy workers.

Ongoing