To stay below 1.5 degrees of warming and stop the worst of climate change we can’t open a single new coal or gas mine — you can't put the fire out while continuing to pour petrol on it.
With new renewable technologies and green manufacturing, we don’t need more coal and gas. However, the federal Labor government continues to approve new coal mines in Queensland, and new gas expansions and exploration across the country.
It's time to demand a ban on new coal and gas. We've put up yard signs in Ryan with the design below, putting pressure on governments to stop approving new coal and gas projects. Sign up here and we'll let you know if we do another print run of the signs. I'll also keep you up to date if there's any progress in our campaign to ban new coal and gas.
3 Common Arguments Against Banning New Coal and Gas (and why they don’t stack up)
Here’s three arguments used to justify opening new coal and gas, and reasons why they don’t add up.
1. “We need new coal to produce steel”
New ‘green steel’ uses hydrogen produced from renewable sources to turn iron ore into steel, and is likely to hit the market in 2025. If Australia invests properly in developing this technology, we could be a powerhouse of renewable steel production, creating thousands of manufacturing jobs and domestic wealth.
2. “Coal and gas produce jobs and wealth”
The entire mining sector employs less than 1% of Australia’s workforce and many new mines will be largely automated. Over the last 30 years, wealth generated by coal and gas has increasingly gone offshore. From 1987 to today, the government share of oil and gas revenue has fallen from 57% to just 7%.
3. “Gas is an important transition fuel”
Australia already has enough gas production to last several decades – and usage is dropping. Unfortunately gas corporations prefer to sell our gas overseas for huge profits, rather than deliver it cheaply for Australians. Investing in new gas simply slows the transition to cheap, reliable and renewable energy.
