Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

These were outlined in the offer document which went to the good senator’s party room last week. We have said that those offsets that can be counted towards Australia’s international climate change obligation will be able to have abatement credited, subject obviously to proper methodologies being put in place. That is necessary because we are talking about a market. If we are serious, as the government is, about wanting farmers and other landholders to have access to the carbon market then the market will need to have confidence in whatever abatement is achieved by these mechanisms. I refer the senator to page 6 of the offer document which went to his party room last week, which refers to the establishment of an independent expert committee. The internationally accepted principles outlined in that offer document are the principles of permanence, additionality, measurability, avoidance of leakage, independent audit and registration.