Australia rejects coal mine near Great Barrier Reef over environmental concerns, first use of eco law
- Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek made the decision on the Central Queensland Coal Project after receiving more than 9,000 public submissions in 10 days
- It is the first time an Australian minister has rejected a proposed coal mine under the country’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
Top coal exporter Australia has blocked a major mine proposed near the Great Barrier Reef under environmental laws.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek announced her final decision on the Central Queensland Coal Project on Twitter on Wednesday, saying in a video that she had received more than 9,000 public submissions on the mine in just 10 business days.
It is the first time that an Australian minister has rejected a proposed coal mine under the country’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. That marks a major turnaround for Australia, long seen as a global climate laggard and one of the world’s biggest per-capita polluters because of its huge coal and natural gas export industries.
“I’ve decided that the adverse environmental impacts are simply too great”, Plibersek said in her Twitter message. “The mine is an open cut coal mine less than 10 kilometres [6 miles] from the Great Barrier Reef and the risk of pollution and irreversible damage to the Reef is very real”.
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Coal is Australia’s biggest export after iron ore and the proposed mine was among a raft of projects that would significantly increase emissions in the nation.
Central Queensland Coal proposed extracting as much as 10 million tons of thermal and coking coal a year over a lifespan of about 24 years, according to the Queensland government. The project is owned by Clive Palmer, a vocal businessman who’s used his mining sector fortune to make forays into politics.
Australia is the world’s biggest exporter of metallurgical coal and only trails Indonesia in shipments of thermal coal. The centre-left Labour government elected in May has been attempting to step up Australia’s action on climate change, pledging to reduce emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 from 2005 levels.
Environmental experts say the Unesco world heritage-listed reef, the world’s biggest coral reef ecosystem, is suffering from the significant impact of climate change and warming of oceans.
