For many it is deeply concerning that the establishment of a supposedly independent National COVID-19 Commission (NCCC) is undermined by being piled high with coal and gas industry heavies. It is especially concerning for the Hunter that we have a federal government that is pushing gas developments as a key part of post COVID economic stimulus when instead we have the opportunity to use this economic reset to reshape a sustainable society for all Australians.
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The proof in this undemocratic pudding is demonstrated front and centre by NCCC Chairman, Nev Power, stepping aside from his position as deputy chairman of a gas company over conflict of interest concerns. He clearly shouldn't have been helicoptered into the NCCC in the first place and especially not by the Prime Minister's process of handpicking his mates. The NCCC is calling for regulatory hurdles to be removed, as well as public funding to assist new gas projects, including the Narrabri Gas Project which would see 850 coal seam gas wells bored into the precious Pilliga Forest.
Here at the Wilderness Society we are concerned that the COVID-19 health crisis should not be used as an excuse to sweep through dirty gas projects and in doing so gaslight regional NSW.
It is undemocratic for the COVID-19 commission to be pressuring the fast tracked approvals of the Narrabri gas project when it is set to go through an independent process in which the decision is made by the Independent Planning Commission not the COVID-19 Commission.
IN OTHER NEWS:
The NCCC is undermining our democracy and corrupting proper process. NSW regions will not be dictated to by the interests of the fossil fuel lobby. Furthermore, we don't have a gas shortage especially now the NSW Government has approved an increase in the capacity of the Port Kembla Gas Terminal. The modification to the original Development Consent will satisfy the market need for more gas during the cooler winter months. Along with high production costs and a plummeted Santos share price, the Narrabri gas project is consequently now even more risky, unwanted and unnecessary.
An interim report from the manufacturing taskforce of the NCCC leaked last week is shocking in its call for massive gas subsidies.
However, Australia's oil and gas producers have warned against the underwriting of a massive expansion of the domestic industry, saying the country does not have a gas shortage and intervention could reduce supply and raise prices.
The report showcases the unjust entitlement of these hand-picked big business representatives. What logical reason can the government have to prop up the dirty gas industry but the well oiled door between the fossil fuel lobby and our elected representatives thus continuing the tradition of jobs for mates.
However, this proposed gassy future is not inevitable. We have the opportunity to be building back better. We can supercharge our economy and create jobs by funding large environment protection projects including investing in clean renewable energy. All while staying true to democratic and accountable processes and taking into account what's important for regional NSW not the lobbyists.
Propping up the dinosaur gas industry continues to endanger our planet's life support systems and locks us into the climate crisis. We must build back better, together. This is a key moment for our country's future, where we can get it right - or wrong.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
A good economic recovery means better outcomes for community, climate and nature.
Get this moment right and we can create tens of thousands of jobs that are good for us all going forwards, including right here in the Hunter. Through upgrading our transport networks, exporting renewables to the world, manufacturing wind turbines, weatherproofing homes, restoring landscapes, supporting sustainable agriculture and investing in nature conservation and wildlife recovery projects we could see a democratic recovery that supports regional NSW.
The path out of economic downturn is not the Government's undemocratic push to fast track the Narrabri Gas Project and erode community rights. With it we see the destruction of our precious forests for a fossil fuel resource that threatens our global climate, sucks 37 billion litres of groundwater from the Great Artesian Basin, destroys agricultural jobs and the farmland used to grow food millions of Australian's rely on. Instead, this is an opportunity to be championing a clean energy revolution with jobs and growth through manufacturing and construction in the renewables sector.
Adopting nature and climate solutions will result in stronger regional communities and healthier and happier lives for us all. Let's keep gas in the ground to build back better for a bright future for all Australians, not a handpicked elite.
