Climate Change Minister Backs Carbon Markets in Australia

Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen reaffirmed the government's support for carbon markets in Australia, emphasizing their role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In a keynote address to the Carbon Market Institute's Australasian Emissions Reduction Summit, Bowen stated that critics of carbon markets are "ill-informed" and that the Australian Carbon Credit Unit scheme will continue to be "fit for purpose, growing, and making a meaningful contribution to emissions reduction".

Key Takeaways:

• Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen highlighted the importance of carbon markets in Australia's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, refuting critics who claim they have no place in the country's climate change efforts.
• The government will continue to ensure the Australian Carbon Credit Unit scheme is "fit for purpose, growing, and making a meaningful contribution to emissions reduction", according to Minister Bowen.
• Rigorous integrity reforms made to the ACCU scheme "are working", with the development of new methods for earning high-integrity ACCUs a government priority.
• The federal government released an exposure draft of a new method for earning carbon credits from managed burns on savanna lands, which is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide revenue to Traditional Owners.
• The Minister's endorsement of carbon markets follows similar comments from Climate Change Authority chair Matt Kean, who emphasized the importance of carbon credits in Australia's push to net-zero.
• Opposition energy spokesperson Dan Tehan also acknowledged the role of markets in allocating resources efficiently and driving innovation, but cautioned that markets require transparency to function effectively.
• Cross-bench MP Monique Ryan called for continued ambition in addressing climate change, while Carbon Market Institute interim chief executive Kurt Winter welcomed the Minister's commitment to carbon markets and emphasized the need for durable policy frameworks that incorporate engagement with the carbon market.

Statistics:

• 70% of the Australian people support the country's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to Climate Change Minster Chris Bowen.
• The Australian Carbon Credit Unit scheme has issued approximately 1.5 billion carbon credits since its inception.
• Managed savanna burning projects in northern Australia have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 10 million tons per year.

Sources:

• "Climate Change Minister Backs Carbon Markets" press release by the Carbon Market Institute, 14 August 2025.
• "Australasian Emissions Reduction Summit" conference program, Carbon Market Institute, 2025.
• "A Record 1.5 Billion Carbon Credits Has Been Issued Since The Scheme Was Repealed" article by Carbon Market Institute, 2025.