National Fuel Quality Standards Regulation Impact Statement 1 ...

interactions with the terrestrial and marine ecosystems are not fully understood, the
changing climate is affecting these systems. The long-term impacts of increased levels of
greenhouse gas emissions include:
- rising sea levels, causing flooding of low-lying areas, significant impacts on coastal
ecosystems and other damage;
- shifting climatic zones (and thus ecosystems and agricultural zones) towards the polar
regions;
- new climatic stresses affecting forests, deserts, rangelands and other ecosystems leading
to adverse impacts on biodiversity;
- changes in rainfall patterns, with decreases in rainfall expected for many regions of
Australia leading to changes in water supply and agricultural productivity; and
- effects on infrastructure and human health with consequential impacts on the insurance
and finance industries.
Under the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (as agreed in December 1997 and signed by Australia on 29 April 1998),
Australia is committed to a target for national greenhouse gas emissions of 8% above
1990 levels by 2008-12. This represents about a 30% reduction against current business
as usual projections of greenhouse gas emissions for the period 2008-12.
The 1998 National Greenhouse Gas Inventory indicates that from 1990 to 1998 national
transport emissions grew by 18%. In 1998 the transport sector was the third largest
contributor to national greenhouse gas emissions, with about 16% (72.6 Mt) of
Australia’s net emissions. Road transport is the largest contributor to transport emissions
(89%) and makes up 14% of total national emissions. Emissions from passenger vehicles
predominate, but light commercial vehicles are a fast growing source. Passenger cars
contributed 9% of national emissions, or 57% of total transport sector emissions in
1998.The outlook for greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector continues to be
of serious concern. Without reduction measures, emissions from the transport sector are
predicted to increase by 38% above 1990 levels by the year 2010.
2.3 GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION
Government intervention is necessary because of the mechanism used to manage
tailpipe emissions. Mandatory vehicle emission standards are established as
Australian Design Rules (ADRs) under the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989. The
gazettal of new, tighter emission standards effectively requires vehicle
manufacturers to adopt new vehicle and emission control technologies. Existing
Australian fuel quality is a constraint to the effective functioning of many of these
new technolo
Government intervention will ensure that any fuel standards are applied equally in respect
of imports as well as domestically produced petroleum fuels and are compatible with