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The Guardian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Labor's new environment laws won't be ‘credible' unless new projects consider climate change, advocates warn
The latest attempt to rewrite federal environmental protection laws won't be 'credible' unless it forces decision-makers to consider climate change when assessing projects, advocates have warned, as consultation on the changes begins. Select environment groups, miners, business and farming chiefs joined the new environment minister, Murray Watt, for a roundtable in Canberra on Thursday. The Climate Council chief executive, Amanda McKenzie, said the laws would remain 'broken' without some mechanism to account for climate impacts, which she described as the 'biggest concern for Australia's environment'. Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton's Clear Air column as a free newsletter 'It is not good enough for the Australian government to push climate change out of the frame,' McKenzie said. 'This is the biggest impact on the Australian environment, and the law simply won't be credible if it does not consider the biggest impact on the Australian environment.' While not ruling it out, Watt again played down the idea, as he insisted emissions from heavy polluting projects were already managed in other ways. 'My argument is that there are a range of mechanisms already in place, both domestically and internationally, to manage the climate impacts of developments,' he said. 'I recognise there are groups who still want us to go further, there are groups who don't want us to go further, and we'll be listening to that feedback on the way through.' The issue of inserting climate into federal nature laws shapes as a major challenge for Watt as attempts to win broad support for a long-awaited overhaul of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act. Five years after Graeme Samuel's review of the EPBC Act, stakeholders from across the board are generally optimistic that changes to the John Howard-era laws can finally be enacted. Labor's proposal to create a federal environment protection agency collapsed in the final months of the last parliament after Anthony Albanese pushed it off the agenda amid concerns about a pre-election backlash in Western Australia. Speaking after Thursday's roundtable meeting, Watt said Labor's thumping federal election win created a 'very clear mandate' to establish the EPA 2.0 and fix the nature laws. The new minister wants to push changes through federal parliament within 18 months, likely as one package of laws rather than in multiple stages as his predecessor Tanya Plibersek attempted to do. Watt said there was support among the invited stakeholders on five broad principles: national environmental standards, streamlined approvals, regional planning, a more 'robust' offsets regime and better data on environmental impacts. However, Watt acknowledged disagreements between industry and environmentalist in other areas, including the powers of the EPA and the issue of adding climate to nature laws. The Greens and climate activists have long advocated for a 'climate trigger' – a mechanism to account for a project's pollution in environmental assessments – as a vehicle to stop new fossil fuel projects. In 2005, Albanese himself – then a shadow minister fighting the Howard government – said 'the glaring gap in matters of national environmental significance is climate change'. Sign up to Clear Air Australia Adam Morton brings you incisive analysis about the politics and impact of the climate crisis after newsletter promotion The now prime minister has long since changed his tune, firmly rejecting the idea after the Greens pushed it during negotiations with Plibersek in the previous term. The provisional approval of a 40-year extension to Woodside's North West Shelf gas plant has ignited fresh calls for 'climate considerations' to be added to the laws, including from the Labor MP, Jerome Laxale. Watt didn't shut the door on the idea after Wednesday's meeting, saying it was 'too early to be committing to particular things in the legislation'. However, he reiterated the government's view that emissions from major projects were already regulated under the safeguard mechanism. Watt also argued that an export project's scope three emissions – pollution from Australian fossil fuels after they are sold overseas – was managed through other countries' commitments under the Paris climate agreement. Speaking after the roundtable, McKenzie and the Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive, Kelly O'Shannessy, stressed they were not wedded to a specific 'climate trigger' model – just the firm view that climate impact must be considered in the environmental assessment process. The Greens environment spokesperson, Sarah Hanson-Young, called for a moratorium on the clearing of critical habitat and approval of fossil fuel projects until the new nature laws were in place. Miners staunchly oppose the introduction of a 'climate trigger', fearing such a provision could torpedo the approval of projects. Peak mining groups the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA), Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA (CME) and Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC) were among the invitees to Wednesday's roundtable in Canberra. The chief executive of AMEC, Warren Pearce, said a 'pretty frank' Watt was clearly intent on legislating changes in the first half of the new parliamentary term. 'There are still differing views, but there is a clear desire to get this done from all stakeholders,' he said. 'AMEC will continue to advocate for greater efficiency, a removal of duplication between State and Federal processes, and a workable process that can be implemented to provide improved environmental protections.'
AU Financial Review
04-05-2025
- Politics
- AU Financial Review
NSW Liberals distance themselves from federal party
Labor's landslide election victory shows Australians have overwhelmingly rejected the coalition's nuclear energy plan, climate action groups say. The Coalition's nuclear plan proposed to build seven reactors across Australia with the first of these not operational until 2035 at a cost of hundreds of billions of dollars. Dutton said it would help reduce carbon emissions and deliver lower cost electricity and gas, and reliable energy. But climate action groups on Sunday said the election result confirmed Australians' opposition to nuclear power. Australian voters have resoundingly rejected Dutton and his nuclear plan, Climate Council chief executive Amanda McKenzie said. 'This was an energy referendum. Nuclear bombed at the ballot, with Australians dubbing it toxic,' McKenzie said in a statement. Dutton not only 'nuked' his party's chances of winning with pro-pollution policies, but the nuclear fantasy cost him his own seat, she said. Voters emphatically backed clean energy over coal, gas and nuclear, said Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive Kelly O'Shanassy, with nuclear now 'off the table'. 'That door is not just closed, it is welded shut.' The Clean Energy Council said the election result was a vote of confidence in a clean energy future. 'The Australian people have reconfirmed their strong support for wind and solar backed by batteries, pumped hydro and a small amount of gas,' chief executive Kane Thornton said.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Orange County fire: 3 rescued from burning home, space heaters for cats could be cause
The Brief Officials said three people were rescued from a home after it caught fire early Tuesday in Orange County. They were taken to local hospitals with injuries that aren't considered life-threatening. All fire crews are reported to be safe. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but a neighbor said that the homeowner believes it was sparked by space heaters used to keep their eight cats warm on the outdoor patio. ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. - Three people were rescued from a home after it caught fire early Tuesday morning in Orange County, officials said. They were taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. All fire crews are safe. What we know The Orange County Fire Rescue Department said the blaze broke out around 4:15 a.m. at a residence on Contoura Drive off Maitland Boulevard. Crews were met with heavy flames shooting from the roof and coming from the garage and front portion of the home. Firefighters were able to knock down the aggressive fire and get it under control. The fire chief said crews will remain at the scene for the majority of the day to monitor hotspots. FOX 35's Amanda McKenzie spoke to a neighbor at the scene, who said the three residents of the home were rescued by another neighbor. What we don't know The state fire marshal will investigate the cause of the fire. However, according to a neighbor who ran in to help save the three people, the homeowner believes it may have been sparked by space heaters on their back outdoor patio, which were used to keep their eight cats warm at night. What they're saying "We saw some cats out back, but, as far as the crews going in, they did a primary and secondary (search). We have not yet located any other cats at this point," the fire chief told reporters during a briefing. MORE NEWS: Proposal to eliminate Florida property taxes, sparks concerns over funding and sales tax hike NTSB investing after seaplane crashes into Lake Dora; 2 survive with minor injuries No other homes were affected by the fire, but the house appears to be a total loss. The roof, walls, windows, and cars were destroyed. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO: Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV The Source This story was written based on information shared by Orange County Fire Rescue and neighbors FOX 35 News spoke to at the scene.
