The Hon. L. D. W. COLEMAN: Is the Minister for Planning and Minister for Energy aware of estimates that motor vehicles in Australia produce about 30 per cent of man-made carbon dioxide - the principal damaging greenhouse gas? Does the New South Wales Government support initiatives to address this and similar side effects of current motor vehicle fuels to protect wombats, native fauna and us?

The Hon. R. J. WEBSTER: I thank the Hon. L. D. W. Coleman for his question and for his continued interest in the environment. Recently I was pleased to launch Energy Challenge 1992. Once again the Office of Energy will be the principal sponsor of the challenge which will take place in January next year. At the launch I was pleased to announce that, once again, the State Government would financially support this important event. The aim of the challenge is to demonstrate and compare the types of fuels which will power our vehicles in the future when declining reserves of fossil fuels and increasing pollution problems will prevent us from using today's conventional forms of transport. Vehicles are compared using a formula that rates their greenhouse gas index, or GGI. The formula was devised by the National Roads and Motorists Association which administers the GGI calculations. The competition is open to vehicles powered by any type of energy. Standard cars being sold on the Australian market cannot be entered without being modified to run more efficiently or on alternative fuels. In no other area is energy as important as it is in the field of transport. In a country of just 17 million people we have more than 10 million motor vehicles.

The Hon. Ann Symonds: How many wombats?

The Hon. R. J. WEBSTER: This is a very serious question. The freedom of movement - the ability to travel where we want and when we want - is an essential element of our modern way of life. But time is running out for this freedom we now enjoy.

[Interruption]

The Hon. R. J. WEBSTER: I should have thought that members opposite would take this question seriously. If the rhetoric of the Opposition and of its shadow spokesperson for energy in the other place is to be believed, he takes this matter very seriously. I hope that the Hon. P. F. O'Grady will listen intently to the answer so that he might learn something. Some experts believe that the world's supply of readily accessible crude oils will be so depleted in 20 years that it will be uneconomic to use as feed stock for producing petrol. Motor vehicles contribute to the greenhouse effect, which continues to be damaging, and alternatives must be sought. In Australia motor vehicles produce about 30 per cent of our man-made carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas. We need to develop new technologies to give us automobility in the future. This requires an examination of our fuel alternatives - solar, battery electric, hydrogen, ethanol, LP gas and compressed natural gas. We must develop cleaner, lighter and safer vehicles made from recyclable materials. That means we need an entirely new kind of car, because the option is simply no cars at all.

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The inaugural Energy Challenge this year was a world first. It brought into public view many of the alternative sources of energy needed to power vehicles of the future. This year's challenge was attended by 100,000 people, and more are expected for Energy Challenge 1992. We will show the world our ideas to conserve our present energy resources and develop practical alternatives. It is not surprising that other countries, including the United States of America and Japan, are copying our initiatives and are now looking at holding their own Energy Challenges. The New South Wales Government is proud of the part it has played in supporting this grand prix event for energy efficient motoring. I commend the Energy Challenge and the initiatives of the NRMA and particularly that of Hans Tholstrup in promoting this event.