We've pretty much all heard about the carbon tax – a new financial disincentive to reduce carbon emissions from Australia's biggest polluters.
Due to come into force on July 1, the tax has conjured up some fierce debate on both a political and environmental scale.
The Sustainable Energy Association (SEA) of Australia is worried that even those on green electricity tariffs will be impacted by the tax, which as you've probably guessed is not what it was designed for!
As there are no carbon emissions associated with renewable energy, there should be no carbon price to pass on to consumers, said SEA chief adviser Ray Wills.
"An increased price of electricity should impact on how retailers calculate the value of solar electricity generated on rooftops and so the price of renewable energy buyback," he commented.
If anything, the carbon tax should give people the motivation they need to install solar energy systems – if electricity companies are to face price increases, the chances are these will be passed on to consumers.
As SEA suggests, this will only be effective if the carbon tax keeps its hands off green energy sources – and a more consistent approach towards pricing solar energy is introduced.
Posted by Mike Peacock