The Australian Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning & Heating (AIRAH) has urged the federal government to match its rhetoric with action if it hopes to lead Australia to a prosperous green future.
While welcoming the forward thinking in the Federal Budget 2024-25, AIRAH CEO Sami Zheng, said there is a long list of issues that still need to be addressed in the short term.
“We need a fundamental change in the way we use our energy. That means making our homes more thermally efficient and all-electric. This will lower our energy bills permanently, and help us achieve our net zero commitments,” she said.
“Instead, the government announced a Future Gas Strategy just days before the Federal Budget that will see continued investment in fossil fuels out to 2050 and beyond.”
According to the Australia Institute, in 2023-24, Australia increased fossil fuel subsidies by 31 per cent, taking the total to $14.5 billion.
“This dwarfs the $27.7 million allocated to promoting electric technology in homes in the Federal Budget,” Zheng said.
“This is not the way to the green future we were promised.”
While AIRAH applauded the $22.7 billion Future Made in Australia package, Zheng pointed out that a recent report from Beyond Zero Emissions estimated that by making clean energy technology locally, Australia could earn $215 billion in cumulative revenue and see up to 53,000 ongoing jobs by 2035.
“This includes at least 7,000 jobs and $17 billion in manufacturing heat pumps,” she said.
“This technology is the key to sustainable buildings. And it exists now. We even have local manufacturing capacity, we just have to grow it.”
The budget also sets ambitious targets for building new homes, with an investment of $6.2 billion.
Recognising the need for skilled workers to build those homes, the government has promised 20,000 new fee-free TAFE places in courses relevant to the construction sector. It will also invest in strategic communications to increase the appeal of Vocational Education and Training (VET)
“We will advocate for complementary strategies to lift completion rates, and to better support the TAFEs and RTOs that train our apprentices,” Zheng said.
“AIRAH was also pleased to see measures to support the university students who will become our industry’s next generation of engineers.”
Another major challenge is attracting more diverse workers. The government has pledged $55.6 million to establish the Building Women’s Careers program to improve women’s access to flexible, safe and inclusive work and training opportunities in traditionally male-dominated industries of national priority, including clean energy sectors.
“We know that our industry will be stronger when we have a more diverse workforce, and we look forward to supporting the government’s program,” she said.
Despite the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and other airborne pathogens, Zheng said indoor air quality has dropped off the government’s radar.
“It’s disappointing,” she said. “AIRAH has been working with leaders from a wide range of disciplines to highlight the importance of indoor air quality to government, and we believed the message was getting through.”
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, some put the cost of sickness related to poor indoor air quality at $12 billion a year.
“A relatively small investment in better ventilation systems would have huge benefits,” Zheng said.
“AIRAH and our industry partners will continue to push for better indoor air quality.
“The HVACR sector has a huge role to play in decarbonising our modern world and providing indoor environments where all Australians can thrive.”