Howard and Costello spend up on the environment ...

Excerpt from the Courier Mail:

$4.3 billion Budget environment splurge

8 May 2007

A $4.3 billion Budget splurge on environmental measures will go some way towards securing support from voters uneasy about climate change in this year's federal election.

The National Heritage Trust gets another $2 billion in funding and a total of $741 million has been allocated to measures to combat climate change.

With the environment likely to a core themes of this year's federal election, Peter Costello used his Budget speech to talk up the Government's commitment to environmental protection, referring to global warming as "one of the serious long-term threats".

As well as $197m set aside for the Global Initiative on Forests and Climate to reduce global emissions from deforestation, the Budget also sets aside $126m over five years to set up and and run an Australian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation.

As part of a $150m expansion of the Government's solar power program, families keen to drive down their energy consumption will be able to claim up to $8000 back on the installation of solar panels, while schools and community buildings can get grants of up to $14,000 towards installing solar systems.

Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the centre was needed because "the best science is telling us that even if the world stops emitting greenhouse gases overnight, we will still experience some degree of climate change."

The $2 billion for National Heritage Trust will allow it to continue in operation until 2013 with its work protecting wetlands and other natural resources.

Almost $60m will be spent on helping to develop alternative transport fuels to reduce dependence on oil and help lower the greenhouse emissions associated current fuel production. There is also $18.5m allocated for reducing the methane emissions from the nation's coal mines.

There is also a further $21.6m funding for work in Antarctica, and the Budget also contains the $10 billion necessary for Prime Minister John Howard's plan to save the water supply in the Murray-Darling basin.