Coal Watch initiative launches in Brisbane

Coal Watch is a new initiative launched by Lock the Gate and the Queensland Conservation Council to understand the impacts on nature, climate and farmland of the huge pipeline of new and expanded coal projects in Queensland.

The initiative was launched at an event in Brisbane last night, where concerned Queenslanders gathered to learn more about the scale of coal expansion across the State.

Coal Watch is available on both LTG’s website and QCC’s website.

Key findings

• There are 28 coal mine expansions proposed in Queensland which would:
  • Add over 14 billion tonnes of carbon pollution to our atmosphere - more than 30 times Australia’s domestic annual emissions
  • Clear at least 10,600 hectares of crucial koala habitat
  • Use over 3.7 trillion litres of water - more than 20 years worth of all of Brisbane households’ annual water use.
• The projects benefit a handful of big mining corporations, with BHP the biggest of them all, proposing to dig over 1.5 billion more tonnes of coal which would create over 4 billion tonnes of climate pollution.

Lock the Gate Queensland Coordinator, Maggie McKeown, said

Queensland communities are already paying the costs of climate change in higher food prices, insurance premiums and the costs of increasingly frequent floods and disasters. Just this year, floods in Queensland have wiped billions off the economy. Meanwhile, coal billionaires are pressuring governments to cut royalties and approve some of the biggest coal mine expansions in the world.

There are 28 coal mine expansions proposed in Queensland,. If approved, these coal mines would add over 14 billion tonnes of pollution into our already overheating atmosphere - which is more than 33 years worth of Australia’s total annual emissions, just from Queensland coal expansions.

These coal expansions would clear at least 10,600 hectares of crucial koala habitat and could drain over 3.7 trillion litres of water - which is about 22 years worth of all of Brisbane households’ annual water use. These proposals would permanently damage precious groundwater resources that farmers and regional communities rely on.

BHP is already the biggest coal miner and polluter of them all. It is proposing additional projects to dig over 1.5 billion tonnes of coal which would create over 4 billion tonnes of climate pollution.

Queensland Conservation Council Coal and Gas Campaigner, Charlie Cox, said

There is a growing and united movement committed to exposing the fires, floods, coral bleaching and habitat destruction that 28 proposed coal mines would contribute to by adding over 14 billion tonnes of climate pollution to our atmosphere.

That’s why the Queensland Conservation Council and Lock the Gate have launched Coal Watch - a new online hub to shine a light on local and global impacts of all the proposed coal projects and give people the facts they need to take action and demand a better future for Queensland.

Last night’s Coal Watch launch event sent a clear message - Queenslanders are refusing to let coal billionaires throw away Queensland’s future. The room was full of people who know the stakes for our climate, for nature, and for the future of our regions and are ready to take action in solidarity with regional communities who want and deserve better.

While the Premier may be adopting language from the coal lobby’s playbook like greenwashing coal as “environmentally sustainable”, Queensland communities are not fooled by the spin.

Both governments and corporations alike need to know that Queenslanders are ready to hold them accountable for their failure to plan for a future beyond coal and gas.

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