Community Focus and Benefits in the Australian Hydrogen Strategy 2024

The Australian Hydrogen Strategy 2024 takes a community-first approach in addressing the critical aspects of hydrogen development, emphasizing the importance of engaging with local communities and ensuring they benefit from the hydrogen economy. The strategy particularly highlights the importance of First Nations engagement, responsible development, and long-term community benefits. This report outlines the strategy's approach to community engagement, the role of regulatory frameworks, and how hydrogen projects are expected to contribute to social, cultural, and economic development in regional areas.

1. First Nations Engagement and Benefit Sharing

Australia's hydrogen industry will primarily operate in rural and remote areas, including lands traditionally owned by First Nations communities. The 2024 Hydrogen Strategy emphasizes that the development of hydrogen projects must prioritize First Nations engagement, not only as stakeholders but as key partners. The approach outlined in the strategy acknowledges both the legal and moral responsibilities to consult and collaborate with First Nations peoples, ensuring their land and sea rights are respected.

Key Engagement Strategies:

• Benefit-sharing beyond royalties: The strategy calls for benefit-sharing frameworks that go beyond traditional financial compensation models, incorporating cultural and social benefits. This includes employment opportunities, business participation, and investment in community infrastructure.
• Culturally appropriate consultations: There is an emphasis on meaningful and culturally respectful engagement, ensuring that First Nations communities are not just consulted but actively involved in decision-making processes. Hydrogen project developers will be encouraged to co-design projects with First Nations people, reflecting their needs and aspirations.

Long-Term Goals:

• Economic Empowerment: The strategy aims to empower First Nations communities by supporting their participation in the hydrogen economy through partnerships in project ownership and operations.
• Capacity Building: Investments in education and training for First Nations peoples are considered essential, ensuring that these communities can acquire the skills needed to participate in hydrogen-related industries.

By embedding First Nations rights and perspectives into the hydrogen development process, the Australian government seeks to ensure that the hydrogen economy fosters inclusive growth.

2. Voluntary Industry Code of Conduct

To build public trust and ensure responsible corporate behavior, the strategy advocates the establishment of a Voluntary Industry Code of Conduct for the hydrogen sector. This code will set ethical and environmental standards for hydrogen companies, guiding their interactions with communities and ensuring transparency throughout project lifecycles.

Goals of the Code:

• Accountability and Transparency: The code will require companies to operate transparently, particularly regarding environmental and social impacts, allowing communities to hold developers accountable for their actions.
• Safety and Environmental Stewardship: It will promote best practices in safety and environmental management, ensuring that hydrogen production and transport do not harm local ecosystems or communities.
• Ethical Business Practices: The code will outline ethical practices in engaging with First Nations and local communities, encouraging companies to provide fair employment opportunities and respect local cultural practices.

Expected Impact:

By adopting the voluntary code, hydrogen developers will demonstrate their commitment to operating responsibly and sustainably, thus improving public perception and facilitating community acceptance of hydrogen projects.

3. Regulation and Community Trust

A key component of the 2024 Hydrogen Strategy is the establishment of a robust regulatory framework that provides certainty for both developers and communities. The strategy emphasizes the importance of a nationally consistent regulatory environment that sets clear expectations for safety, environmental standards, and community engagement.

Regulatory Measures:

• National Codes and Standards: The strategy supports the development of national codes of best practice covering hydrogen production, transportation, storage, and refueling. These codes will ensure a high level of safety and environmental stewardship across the hydrogen value chain.
• Clear Regulatory Pathways: Streamlined regulatory processes are proposed to accelerate project approvals without compromising safety or environmental oversight. This will include guidelines for the assessment of hydrogen projects in sensitive areas, such as Indigenous lands or regions with high biodiversity value.

Enhancing Community Confidence:

The strategy acknowledges that transparent regulations are essential to building community trust. Communities will feel more confident in supporting hydrogen projects if they are assured that these projects adhere to rigorous safety and environmental standards.

4. Water Management

Water is a crucial input for hydrogen production, particularly in the electrolysis process used to produce green hydrogen. Recognizing community concerns around water use in arid regions, the strategy outlines approaches to sustainable water management that benefit both hydrogen developers and local communities.

Water Infrastructure Planning:

• Sustainable Water Sources: Hydrogen projects will be required to source water sustainably, such as through desalination, water recycling, or the use of non-potable water. The strategy encourages early collaboration between hydrogen developers and local governments to ensure shared access to water infrastructure.
• Regional Water Security: The strategy calls for hydrogen projects to contribute to regional water security by investing in infrastructure that serves both project needs and the surrounding community. This may include new desalination plants or improvements to existing water supply systems.

Community Benefits:

By incorporating shared water management practices, hydrogen projects will help improve water security in rural and regional areas, potentially benefiting agricultural and residential users.

5. Domestic Hydrogen Supply and Export Prioritization

The strategy strikes a balance between positioning Australia as a global leader in hydrogen exports and ensuring that domestic industries and communities benefit from the hydrogen economy. Domestic hydrogen supply is a key focus, with the government seeking to avoid the scenario where hydrogen exports leave Australian industries without affordable access to clean energy.

Policy Mechanisms:

• Domestic Offtake Agreements: Hydrogen projects that receive public funding will be encouraged to prioritize domestic supply contracts, ensuring that Australian manufacturers and industries have access to competitively priced hydrogen.
• Balancing Export and Domestic Needs: The strategy outlines plans to monitor global and domestic hydrogen markets to prevent supply shortages for Australian consumers, ensuring that export commitments do not undermine local supply.

Community Expectations:

By safeguarding domestic hydrogen supply, the strategy addresses potential concerns from local communities that hydrogen exports could lead to higher energy costs or reduced access to clean energy for Australian industries.

6. Community Engagement Review and Ongoing Participation

Building on the findings of the Community Engagement Review, the strategy emphasizes continuous community involvement in the hydrogen economy. The review highlighted the need for proactive engagement to build community trust, particularly in regions where renewable energy projects have faced opposition.

Key Actions:

• Developer Rating System: The strategy proposes a rating system for hydrogen project developers based on their community engagement practices. This system will provide communities with a transparent assessment of how well companies are adhering to engagement and benefit-sharing commitments.
• Ongoing Consultation: Hydrogen project developers will be required to engage in ongoing consultations with local communities throughout the project lifecycle, from planning and construction to operation and decommissioning.

Strengthening Community Support:

By implementing these mechanisms, the strategy aims to ensure that communities are not only consulted but are active participants in shaping the hydrogen economy. This approach is expected to foster long-term community support for hydrogen projects.

7. Ensuring Community Benefits from Publicly Funded Hydrogen Projects

To address public concerns about the use of taxpayer funds for hydrogen projects, the strategy emphasizes the need for clear community benefit frameworks for projects that receive government support. These frameworks will outline how hydrogen projects will contribute to local employment, infrastructure development, and social well-being.

Community Benefit Principles:

• Employment and Training: Projects receiving public funding will be required to demonstrate how they will provide local employment and training opportunities, particularly in regional and disadvantaged areas.
• Infrastructure Investment: Hydrogen projects will be encouraged to invest in local infrastructure, such as roads, energy grids, and community facilities, ensuring that public funding leads to tangible benefits for local communities.

Alignment with the Future Made in Australia Policy:

The strategy’s focus on community benefits aligns with the broader Future Made in Australia policy, which seeks to ensure that public investments in renewable energy projects contribute to national economic development.

8. Conclusion

The Australian Hydrogen Strategy 2024 presents a forward-thinking and inclusive approach to hydrogen development, placing communities at the heart of the energy transition. By prioritizing First Nations engagement, establishing robust regulatory frameworks, promoting responsible industry conduct, and ensuring that domestic hydrogen needs are met, the strategy seeks to unlock the full potential of hydrogen while securing broad-based community support. Sustainable water management, transparent consultation processes, and benefit-sharing arrangements ensure that hydrogen projects not only contribute to Australia’s decarbonization goals but also deliver lasting benefits to local and regional communities.