Western Australia’s peak environment group has called on the LNG Jobs Taskforce to focus on the huge job creation opportunities that are immediately available in WA, by LNG companies addressing their rapidly rising carbon pollution.
The LNG sector is WA’s largest polluter, and growth in this pollution is putting Australia’s international obligations under the Paris Agreement at risk.
As part of the Clean State campaign, the Conservation Council of WA (CCWA) recently released independent analysis from RepuTex Energy, revealing around 4,000 new jobs would be created in land management, renewable energy, and other industries if the LNG industry offset its greenhouse gas emissions.
CCWA Director Piers Verstegen said, “We call upon the Premier and the LNG Jobs Taskforce to focus not just on engineering and manufacturing jobs, but also consider the huge job creation potential that exists in tackling carbon pollution from the LNG industry.
“While the cost of tackling LNG pollution represents just a few percent of LNG companies’ mega profits, it represents an enormous source of jobs and benefits for Western Australians. All of these jobs and benefits can be captured here in Western Australia.”
Clean State Campaign Manager Kate Kelly said that jobs tackling carbon pollution were easy wins for the LNG Jobs Taskforce and should be considered low hanging fruit.
“The analysis shows that the majority of jobs in tackling carbon pollution will be located in regional areas. Industries such as land management, tree planting, and renewable energy would be big winners and even bigger employers.
“The LNG industry is currently the state’s largest polluter, but tackling that pollution can be turned into a huge opportunity to develop new clean industries that will position WA to be a leader in the future low carbon global economy.
“This is a win-win for jobs and the environment, and should be top of the agenda for the LNG Jobs Taskforce.”