Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency

The Department is charge with leading development and coordination of Australia's climate change and energy efficiency policies. As such, they are responsible for policy advice, program administration and service delivery in four key areas:

• reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions;
• promoting energy efficiency;
• adapting to climate change; and
• helping to shape a global climate solution.

These responsibilities will help reduce carbon emissions, mitigate the impact of climate change and help Australia adapt to the inevitable climate change that we cannot avoid. In addition, as a department, they are also responsible for the oversight of the Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator and the Australian Carbon Trust Ltd.

Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator
The Office of the Renewable Energy Regulator is a statutory authority established to oversee the implementation of the Australian Government's mandatory renewable energy target.

The NSW Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme (GGAS)
The NSW Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme (GGAS) commenced on 1 January 2003. It is one of the first mandatory greenhouse gas emissions trading schemes in the world.

The NSW Energy Savings Scheme (ESS)
The NSW Energy Savings Scheme is a mandatory energy efficiency scheme for electricity retailers and other liable parties with an energy efficiency target of 0.4 per cent of total electricity sales which will increase to 4 per cent in 2014

The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET)
The Victorian Energy Efficiency Target (VEET) scheme, which commenced on 1 January 2009, aims to encourage the uptake of energy efficient technology, initially in the residential sector