It now means the country will price carbon emissions from July 1 next year.

While Australian Greens leader Bob Brown said he would be marking the occasion by opening a bottle of bubbly and Climate Change minister Greg Combet described it as a historic day for reform, not everyone welcomed the news.

The Australian Coal Association described it as a “vote to handicap one of Australia’s largest exports” at a time of uncertainty in the global economy.

The association says it will continue to seek to have a number of issues addressed, but said the legislation passed today meant a package of measures with fatal flaws had now become law.

“No other coal exporting country imposes a tax on fugitive emissions from coal mining,” the ACA said in a statement.

“In doing so, the carbon tax will make Australia’s coal industry less competitive internationally, without delivering any environmental benefit by way of global emissions reduction.”

It says that not only has the coal industry been excluded from transitional assistance as an emissions-intensive, trade-exposed industry, despite meeting the government’s own criteria, but the sector’s exclusion was been enshrined in legislation.

“Section 145 of the main bill permanently locks coal mining out of the transitional assistance arrangements, regardless of future market conditions or the outcome of any Productivity Commission reviews,” the ACA said.

Carbon capture and storage has also been shut out of more than $A10 billion in funding, including via the $10 billion Clean Energy Finance Corporation.

Yet, treasury modelling of the Clean Energy Future package acknowledges the essential rose of CCS in meeting Australia’s emissions reduction targets while underwriting the nation’s energy security and national competitiveness.

“This exclusion of CCS is completely inconsistent with the national interest,” the ACA said.