New Santos gas project approved
You may not be aware that Tanya Plibersek quietly approved Santos’ project to develop 116-well coal seams in the Surat Basin in Queensland with an approximate 30 year operation life. This approval will allow clearance around each well of up to 2.5 hectares of land leading to further habitat destruction and more species facing extinction. This gas is not for the local market but Korea and Malaysia. Santos donated over $500,000 to Labor since 2015. It has donated a similar amount to the Coalition.
When Labor was voted into government we believed it understood the need for substantial and immediate action to reduce our carbon emissions and move rapidly to 100% renewables. However, Labor has failed to live up to our expectations and is unwilling to listen to the science, Traditional Owners and the general public. We deserve better.
There are a number of immediate concerns with current government policy:
- there are 114 new coal and gas projects in Australia waiting for approval.
- the proposed Safeguard Mechanism will make unlimited offsets available to emitters and will do nothing to stop new coal and gas projects https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/17/safeguard-mechanism-what-is-it-will-it-cut-emissions-and-what-role-do-carbon-offsets-play
- Climate Analytics recent report describes the implications of the Safeguard Mechanism https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LXoVFkXZNx3DBSJ0SEwP1F1iCzGohtTx/view
- There is also an excellent article about how the offsets market has been infiltrated by the fossil fuel industry https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2023/march/nick-feik/great-stock-n-coal-swindle
- A recent report by the International Energy Agency indicates methane emissions from Australian coal and gas mining may be higher than reported by the government. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/23/methane-from-australian-coal-and-gas-could-be-60-higher-than-estimated
- Methane is a more potent greenhouse gas than CO2 and is released with gas and coal mining. Australia is one of the top 15 emitters in the world. 40% of methane emissions come from fossil fuel mining, and 40% from agriculture
- Labor continues to enthusiastically support fossil fuel mining with over $11billion of our taxpayer money spent annually on subsidies to that industry https://theconversation.com/we-pay-billions-to-subsidise-australias-fossil-fuel-industry-this-makes-absolutely-no-economic-sense-189866
- Australia has signed the Global Methane Pledge which commits Australia to reduce its energy methane emissions as a priority, and improve its monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) but this means nothing if new fossil fuel projects continue to be approved
We urge you to write to Tanya Plibersek Minister.Plibersek@dcceew.gov.au to respectfully voice your concerns about this project and the 114 new coal and gas projects awaiting approval.
We also encourage you to write to your Federal Labor MP. For the Bennelong electorate write to Jerome Laxale. His email is jerome@jeromelaxale.com
And now to other news …
As at 28 February January 2023 CO2 reading was 418.4 parts per million. Source NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). Safe level is 350 parts per million
SOME GOOD THINGS HAVE HAPPENED 2023 could be good for action on climate change https://theconversation.com/6-reasons-2023-could-be-a-very-good-year-for-climate-action-197680; Credit Suisse, Standard Charter and Citi have stopped accepting Adani bonds as collateral; Norway’s largest pension fund, KLP, has divested from Adani Green; Clive Palmer-owned Waratah Coal has withdrawn its appeal against last year’s ruling; Glencore has not lodged an appeal to the IPC’s rejection of its Glendell mine expansion; Bangladeshi Government assigning a committee to review the exploitative contract that forces Bangladesh to buy dirty coal power from Adani at exorbitant rates
WHAT WE’VE BEEN DOING
Wrote to Tanya Plibersek asking for government to implement stronger policies on recycling plastic
WHAT’S ON
Meet the Candidates The forum to meet the Ryde electorate candidates that was to be held on 18 March has been changed to 19 March at 11.30am. It will still be held at the Environmental Education Centre in the Field of Mars, East Ryde
Meet the Lane Cove electorate Candidates If you couldn’t attend the Zoom meeting held by NCC last week here is a recording of the forum. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZYAQz-vpzg
Household chemical cleanout will be held on 25 March 9am-3.30pm at the Meadowbank Netball courts carpark, Adelaide Street, Meadowbank. For information on what you can take, go to https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/your-environment/recycling-and-reuse/household-recycling-overview/find-crcs-or-hcco
Small Birds Talk will be held by the Habitat Network on 26 March 1-3pm at All Saints’ Church, Ambrose Street Hunters Hill. Hear about the importance of wildlife corridors and what you can do in your garden to encourage small birds. To book go to http://vollmerj@huntershill.nsw.gov.au. For more information contact Jacqui Vollmer at Hunters Hill Council on 0402 716 208
Smart Energy Event will be held on 3-4 May at the ICC in Sydney. It is a free event but you will need to register. https://eventfrog.eventsair.com/smart-energy-conference-exhibition-2023/reg/Site/Register
Sustainable House Programme Register for a series of online workshops for new builders or those looking to renovate or improve home efficiency. https://sustainablehouseday.com/program/
NEWS AND EVENTS
Rainforest carbon offsets 90% of the certifier Verra Carbon Standard’s offsets were worthless. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/18/revealed-forest-carbon-offsets-biggest-provider-worthless-verra-aoe
Donations to political parties and a lack of transparency is a concern when decisions about fossil fuel companies and mining need to be made by government. Two articles for you https://michaelwest.com.au/dark-money-australian-donations-2022/ and https://theconversation.com/big-money-was-spent-on-the-2022-election-but-the-party-with-the-deepest-pockets-didnt-win-198780 Sign the petition asking for an end to dirty political donations https://greens.org.au/campaigns/dirty-donations
Murray Darling plan NSW government’s plan is failing to save this river system https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/06/new-nsw-plan-for-murray-darling-saves-almost-no-water Water buy-backs – the best way forward https://theconversation.com/water-buybacks-are-back-on-the-table-in-the-murray-darling-basin-heres-a-refresher-on-how-they-work-200529
Santos
Sign the letter asking Rugby Australia to drop Santos as a sponsor. https://act.350.org/sign/tell-rugby-australia-cut-ties-santos/
Santos is being sued by Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) because of the company’s claim that natural gas is a “clean” fuel and hydrogen made using it amounts to “zero emissions” was likely to mislead. https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/national/2023/02/21/santos-clean-fuel-claims-challenged-court/
Federal government still not dealing decisively with climate change
$600m for gas companies for carbon capture, use and storage. Sign the letter opposing this waste of taxpayer money for an unproven technology https://fossilfuelwatch.good.do/nogasbailouts/Email-CCS-money/
Sign the petition asking the government to ensure big polluters do their fair share in reducing climate pollution https://www.ap4ca.org/safeguardourkids
Saving our native forests here’s two petitions for you to sign. https://greens.org.au/nsw/native-forests-signup and https://wilderness.good.do/commrights/call4cred/
Adani sign the letter asking Adani’s investors to stop funding the company https://www.stopadani.com/adani-investors
Australian big emitters could cut emissions without using offsets. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/20/australias-big-emitters-could-cut-co2-by-90-by-2050-through-supply-chains-report-finds
Macquarie Island sign the petition asking Tanya Plibersek to expand the protection of this Australian world heritage island https://saveourmarinelife.good.do/macquarieisland/addyourname/
RENEWABLE ENERGY
Hydrogen why it won’t save us https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zklo4Z1SqkE&t=223s
Home PV and how to maximise savings https://theconversation.com/how-to-maximise-savings-from-your-home-solar-system-and-slash-your-power-bills-197415
Vanadium redox flow battery cheaper, safer and longer-lasting than lithium-ion cells. An Australian invention from 20 years ago.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2023-02-02/vanadium-redox-flow-battery-and-future-of-grid-energy-storage/101911604
Mismatch between ambition and reality Australia not adding green energy fast enough to meet targets. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-31/australia-adding-renewable-energy-less-than-half-speed-needed/101907914
RECYCLING AND SUSTAINABILITY
Our plastic addiction and how we can wean ourselves off it https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/life/environment/2023/02/11/the-solution-our-plastic-addiction
Household energy savings upgrades The NSW government has an number of incentives to help save energy. For information go to https://www.energy.nsw.gov.au/households/rebates-grants-and-schemes/household-energy-saving-upgrades
Better recycling. Here’s a guide to what the recycling symbols on packaging mean. https://recyclingnearyou.com.au/arl/
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Car rego – should it be based on the car’s emissions? ACT is trialling this proposal. https://theconversation.com/why-a-shift-to-basing-vehicle-registration-fees-on-emissions-matters-for-australia-199294
Did you buy an EV after 1 September 2021 for personal use? You may be eligible for a rebate by the NSW government. For information and how to apply go to https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/apply-electric-vehicle-purchase-rebate-individuals