In many parts of Australia, electricity prices have gone up in the last five years, and are forecast to go up more. What's going on?

The major reason prices are rising is that over the next five years, more than $42 billion will be invested in new infrastructure, like poles and wires. We need new poles and wires because they're aging, and because there's a growing population and increased demand for power.

Remember, this needs to be spent whether or not we have schemes to cut pollution and support clean energy.

In this article we've answered as many questions as we can so you can understand what is affecting power prices, what impact a price tag on pollution would really have, and what you can do to cut your power bills at home.

What impact will Australia's target for 20% renewable energy by 2020 have?
The cost of the renewable energy target averages out to around 80 cents a week per household. As we build more clean energy, economies of scale mean it will become cheaper.

If we put a price tag on pollution, what will happen to electricity prices?
First, remember power prices will go up because of spending on network infrastructure - that's the poles and wires - and this spending is locked in over the next five years.

Australia needs a price on pollution to drive the shift from a pollution dependent economy to a cleaner economy.

A price on pollution will raise electricity prices marginally, but it will also raise money which can be used for helping households and business reduce their bills by being more energy efficient.

We can decide how to spend the money raised, and we should spend some of it on compensating households - so that we're all better off with a price on pollution.

We're all in this together. Big companies should not be allowed to avoid costs while households pay.

FACT: 76% of Australians support charging businesses that pollute and protecting people who can't afford energy price increases.

You could fill a room with all the studies that say putting a price on pollution is the cheapest way to reduce it. Policies that promote energy efficiency or clean energy investment are also necessary, but climate policy without a price on pollution is like having road rules but no speed limits.

Rewarding big businesses that cut pollution, and charging those that don't, will provide incentives to shift to clean energy. It will make clean energy bigger and cheaper, and create jobs.

If we delay putting a price on pollution, what will happen to electricity prices?
They'll go up even more! Delaying a price on pollution is causing uncertainty for electricity providers, and this is increasing prices.

Why? Because the future of our electricity supply is so unclear, energy companies are proposing to build band aid solutions to meet the projected demand - inefficient power generators that are cheap to build but expensive to run. This stop-gap means prices go up, not down.

It's time we stopped propping up old technologies and delaying the inevitable. Business leaders are calling a price tag on pollution "inevitable" so the sooner we get on with it, the sooner investors will have the certainty they need.

What role can energy efficiency play?
We can easily get smarter about how we use energy, so we still get the services we need - like comfortable houses, lighting and refrigeration - but we use less energy.

The CSIRO has found that even modest improvements in energy efficiency can more than offset rising prices.

Energy efficiency can also stop, or even reverse, the rising demand which is contributing to price hikes.

For many households and businesses, saving energy can actually be profitable, meaning they save more money than they spend on efficiency measures.

FACT: Detailed research by Climateworks shows households and businesses can save $5 billion by 2020 - just be being more efficient!

Check out ACF's award winning GreenHome program for great energy-saving tips and advice »

Despite the cost of living concerns, do people still want action?
Australians overwhelmingly support taking action to reduce pollution and move to cleaner energy sources - even people who describe themselves as being under financial pressure.

A poll of 2000 people from midyear found that Australians can also spot a scare campaign when they see one.