Gladstone community turns out to discuss renewable future

More than 50 locals turned out last night to hear from expert speakers and discuss the future of Gladstone’s energy transformation at Ward's Brewery. The event, Our renewable future: a Gladstone Region community conversation, was hosted by the Queensland Community Alliance and Queensland Conservation Council.

The crowd heard from speakers, including Deputy Mayor Natalia Muszkat, former Councilor and now Organiser at the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union Kahn Goodluck, and CQU lecturer Dr. Sanath Alahakoon. A key theme of the night was the importance of getting the energy transformation right to secure local industry.

Queensland Conservation Council Regional Environmental Advocate Emma Smith said

We know we need to transition our energy system with renewable energy and storage, especially here in Gladstone where Rio Tinto has made it clear that they need to repower their operations to be globally competitive.

I grew up in Central Queensland and I’ve got family and friends who are employed by Rio’s aluminum operations. We need to keep up with global trends to future-proof our industry and smelter.

This event was to connect the dots for the community because there’s so much conflicting information out there and a lot of uncertainty from our politicians.

This isn’t helped by the fact that the Crisafulli Government doesn’t have an energy plan. We need policy certainty to drive new clean energy investment, which is critical to keep our industrial jobs in Gladstone.

Coal train driver and Rail, Train and Bus Union Secretary Rachel Bowers said

The transition is important because we are a very heavy industry town. Not only myself, but my family all work in heavy industry in the region.

We just need plans set in place so we can ensure our future is set in stone, not just for ourselves but for our children as well.

Community conversations like the forum and the event tonight at the Ward’s precinct are really important because it’s bringing our voices to the forefront so that our voices are heard so we can make sure the change is suitable not only for us, but for everybody.

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