Australia’s failure to reassess its commitment to coal will have serious negative consequences, not only for Australia’s economy, but for the health and well being of millions of people and the global environment.
The Carmichael coal mine (not pictured) is set to be Australia’s largest.
Publishing/CSIRO
Australia’s new cap on emissions includes aspects of a “baseline and credit” emissions trading scheme. That’s cheaper for businesses, but means more regulation.
While the Newcastle council decision may not trigger divestment from fossil fuels, it is a chance for the port to consider its future direction.
Jeremy Buckingham/Flickr
Amid jeers of hypocrisy and cheers of climate leadership, what can we really say about this policy move in one of New South Wales’ historic coal towns?
Carbon capture and storage would help the coal industry survive, but it remains elusive.
AAP Image/Dave Hunt
For more than a decade the coal industry’s favoured response to climate change was carbon capture and storage, or CCS. CCS is still the main defence, but the absence of functioning projects is making it ever more threadbare.
Is Australia’s 2030 climate target really going to protect the coal industry?
Reuters
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has said his government’s 2030 climate target will be good for the environment and jobs – and good for protecting the nation’s coal industry.
Coal PR has been promoting coal’s benefits for decades.
Jeremy Buckingham/Flickr
A politician invites coal industry representatives to a celebration of their work at the New South Wales Parliament. The purpose? To push the message that coal is absolutely essential to our economy and wellbeing.
The ornamental snake - one of the two species that the federal government failed to account for when approving the Carmichael mine.
Stewart Macdonald/Wikimedia
The controversial Shenhua Watermark coal mine in New South Wales recently cleared another hurdle along the way to being granted full approval to proceed. But there are major environmental risks which should still call the project into question.
Cattle on the Liverpool Plains in New South Wales. The new coal mine is to be developed in the hills nearby.
Image Library/Flickr
Federal environment minister Greg Hunt has claimed that he had no choice but to approve Shenhua’s controversial Watermark Coal Mine near Gunnedah in New South Wales. But the legislation suggests otherwise.
What fly ash looks like after being stored in an ash dam.
Leslie Petrik
The ash produced by coal mining is particularly harmful to humans. There is a way to reduce that harm and use the ash effectively, though.
While many people in India live without electricity, it is looking less likely that Australian coal will supply it.
Environmental Change and Security Program/Flickr
“India needs Australian coal” is a view promoted by government and industry alike. But is there really a case for Australian coal in India? The evidence suggests not.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has thrown his support behind coal mining, arguing coal is ‘good for humanity’.
Dan Peled/AAP
Coal closures announced this week in South Australia will cause employment pain, but could also help pave the way for the state to go 100% renewable - something that modelling suggests is eminently possible.
The new Reef 2050 plan is taking the long view on protecting the Great Barrier Reef - but does it have the right vision?
Nickj/Wikimedia Commons
The federal and Queensland governments have unveiled their blueprint for protecting the Great Barrier Reef for future generations. Will the $2 billion plan succeed? Our experts give their verdicts.
Rio Tinto’s Mount Thorley-Warkworth mine in the Hunter Valley, which looks set to expand further. The NSW planning department says it would “not be reasonable” to require Rio Tinto “to completely or even partially backfill the final void”.
Lock The Gate Alliance/Flickr
There are hundreds of derelict mine sites across New South Wales – and the state planning department has admitted it is “not aware of the total size” of large mining voids currently being left behind.