Data on carbon pollution from Australian states and territories released today by the Australian Department of Environment and Energy shows that out-of-control growth in LNG pollution in WA is putting Australia’s Paris targets at risk, according to Western Australia’s peak environment group.
IMAGE: Chevron's Wheatstone LNG Plant CREDIT: Google
Conservation Council of WA (CCWA) Director Piers Verstegen said that the figures showed that WA was ‘ground zero’ in the battle to get Australia’s pollution down.
“The numbers are clear. The complete failure to control runaway pollution from the WA LNG industry is now the biggest factor driving national pollution, and is compromising our international commitments on climate change.
“When at full production, the WA LNG industry will be producing nearly 40 million tonnes of carbon pollution every year. This is more than the entire savings achieved by the Morrison Government’s Emissions Reduction Fund, and more than the combined savings of all Australian renewable energy capacity combined.
“Every other Australian state, and almost every other sector of the economy has now stabilised its pollution growth, while the big polluters in the LNG industry are being allowed to get away with runaway pollution with no limits in sight.
“Regulating this industry and controlling its pollution is the direct responsibility of the State Government, but the state has been abrogating its responsibility in this area for years, and the results of this are now clearly visible in the national carbon accounts released today.
“The good news is that tackling pollution from this industry would deliver thousands of new jobs for Western Australian carbon farming, renewable energy, and other clean industries. The longer we sit back and do nothing about it, the faster our pollution rises, and the more jobs we miss out on.
“The ongoing failure of the LNG sector to control their emissions has been laid bare in these pollution accounts, which dispel the myth of ‘clean gas’. The LNG sector can no longer hide behind this myth.
“We are calling on all Western Australians and the State Government to get behind efforts to clean up LNG pollution here in WA. We cannot simply sit back and let WA’s pollution continue to increase at a rate that is putting our international obligations on climate change at risk, while costing us new jobs and investment here in WA.”
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