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Scrapping Of Carbon Tax Threatens Carbon Farming
ABC Rural By Caitlyn Gribbin Updated Mon Jul 15, 2013 2:25pm AEST PHOTO: Henbury Station in Central Australia, site of a failed attempt to establish the world’s biggest carbon farm. (ABC: Caddie Brain) AUDIO: Fears over future of carbon farming (ABC Rural) MAP: Sydney 2000 Research and lobby group, the Australian Farm Institute, says carbon farming won’t be profitable for years, if an emissions trading scheme is fast tracked. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will scrap the carbon tax and move to an emissions trading scheme next year – one year earlier than originally planned. The fixed carbon price of $24.15 a tonne will be removed in favour of a floating price, thought to be between $6 and $10 a tonne. Mick Keogh, from the Australian Farm Institute, says that price is too low for farmers to make profits from the Carbon Farming Initiative, a scheme where farmers earned carbon credits and sell to people and businesses wanting to offset their emissions. “If you’re in the market to sell carbon credits, you’re now looking at the potential next year that those credits will be worth $6 a tonne, rather than the $24.15 a tonne,” he said. “That obviously has a big impact on the potential profitability of a project you might be looking to undertake. “It would be very limited numbers of projects that would likely to be viable.” Farmers say the carbon tax has significantly pushed up their bills, especially electricity. Australian Dairy Farmers president Noel Campbell says a lower carbon price is a win for agriculture. “It’s positive compared to where we have been, certainly it will make a difference,” Mr Campbell said. “But still we will need to make sure that with whatever situation we’ve got, we’re in a competitive situation with the people that we trade against.” Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says the Prime Minister has not truly abolished the carbon tax, but is merely changing its name. The Greens leader Christine Milne says the decision to scrap the carbon tax is “cowardly”. The Australian Industry Group says Mr Rudd’s move is positive and will cut costs for businesses once the floating price begins next July. Continue reading
MSU Planting Poplars To Generate Biomass For Power
Updated 3:41 pm, Sunday, June 16, 2013 EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan State University has planted the first of six plots of poplar trees as part of an initiative to generate power from renewable sources. The 10-acre plots will grow fuel for the university’s T.B. Simon Power Plant, the East Lansing schoolannounced this month. The trees will be harvested, chipped and burned as an alternative to coal, said Michigan State spokeswoman Holly Whetstone. She said the university adopted an energy transition plan last year that includes spending on sustainable energy research and development. The Simon Power Plant now produces about 1.7 percent of its energy from untreated wood chips, and only one of four boilers now can burn wood chips. “Through a process called torrefaction, MSU scientists can create a material … that is suitable for boilers,” Whetstone said in a posting on the university’s website. “Torrefaction occurs when a plant material is roasted to eliminate moisture and unstable chemicals. These chemicals can then be burned to power the process. The result is a concentrated material that can be transported and burned like coal.” About 300 tons of the torrefied biomass will be pulverized in the power plant’s burners in 2013, the university said. “If test burns are successful, torrefied biomass will replace a fraction of MSU’s coal use as early as 2014,” Whetstone said. Online: Biomass project: [url=”http://bit.ly/12Pp6q8″] http://bit.ly/12Pp6q8 Continue reading
Ukraine: Article "Update On Foreign Investment In Ukrainian Agricultural Land"
Last Updated: 23 May 2013Article by Galina Khmarksaya Frishberg & Partners The moratorium on alienation of Ukrainian farm land has long prevented meaningful foreign investment into the Ukrainian agricultural sector. To somehow obtain access to agricultural land, instead of outright ownership foreign investors had to register Ukrainian companies that entered into lease agreements with landowners, most with a “right to buy” option if and when the moratorium will be lifted. However, if the current amendments to the legislation will be approved, the lifting of moratorium will not allow any legal entities to purchase their leased land despite any provisions to the contrary in their lease agreements. To add insult to injury, the suggested taxes and other mandatory payments to the state, will decrease any profits generated from the leased land. By way of background, at the end of 2012, the Verkhovna Rada (the Parliament) adopted Law №11315, further extending the moratorium on selling agricultural land until January 1 st , 2016, right after the next Presidential elections. Under the draft law, privatization of farm land will benefit the Ukrainian government first and foremost, followed by select Ukrainian citizens. For instance, potential buyers of farm land can only be (a) the Ukrainian government; ( regional state authorities; © the State Land Bank; or (d) Ukrainian citizens. Moreover, only the first three categories have the priority right to purchase any agricultural land that is offered for sale. All individuals who wish to own more than 100 hectars will need to obtain permission from GosZemAgenstvo (the State Land Agency). This is a highly controversial requirement because it allows government bureaucrats to decide which Ukrainian individuals can own large parcels of farm land. Significantly, even after cancellation of the moratorium, all legal entities (including those with foreign investment) would only be able to lease farm land, rather than buying it outright. The minimum term has been proposed to increase from 5 to 7 years, while the maximum term would remain at 50 years. Moreover, the minimum amount of lease payments would increase dramatically: if the draft law passes, the minimum lease amount will be 3% of the land’s value. Additional land tax of 1% of the value of 1 hectar will also be levied. If the farm land is not used according to its zoned purpose, the above taxes will increase by 1.5 times, which will be further increased on a yearly basis by 20%. Taking the above into account, unfortunately, the Ukrainian agricultural sector would remain stagnant (yet stable) for foreign investors for the unforeseeable future. Besides prolongation of the moratorium on sale of agricultural land, foreign investors would still be prohibited from owning agricultural lands even after cancellation of the moratorium. Thus, lease arrangements will remain the only way for foreign investors to gain access to agricultural lands (including land for personal farming or gardening). By way of exception to the general rule, a foreign legal or natural entity may inherit agricultural land. However, even in such case, the land will be subject to alienation within one year from the time of inheritance; otherwise, the ownership rights thereto would be revoked. In conclusion, there still have been no significant movements in Ukraine towards the liberation of the agricultural land market for foreign investors. If the draft law is of any indication, foreign investors will still not be allowed to purchase Ukrainian farm land despite any “buy-out” options that may exist in their current lease agreements. Instead, all legal entities (including foreign-owned companies) will be required to seek alternative ways attain agricultural land on a temporary basis by entering into short, medium and long-term lease agreements. The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances. Continue reading
