2026-02-13
The Greens have called Labor’s extension of the Middlemount Coal Mine a continuation of their ‘climate vandalism’ with more coal, pollution and bulldozing of habitat locked in until 2044.
Environment Minister Murray Watt rubber stamped Yancoal and Peabody’s proposal to allow the extraction of an additional 112 million tonnes of coal plus clearing of more than 180 hectares of threatened koala and glider habitat.
Labor’s decision ignores expert advice from the Independent Expert Scientific Committee who warned of risks to riparian continuity, declining water quality, increasingly saline residual voids and cumulative groundwater impacts.
The Climate Council estimates that recent approvals add up to billions of tonnes of future emissions meaning worse heatwaves, more floods, more catastrophic bushfires and rising insurance costs for everyday Australians.
Environmental Advocacy in Central Queensland analysis shows the exported coal from this single extension will generate hundreds of millions of tonnes of CO₂-e when burned overseas.
Quotes attributable to Leader of the Australian Greens and Climate spokesperson, Larissa Waters:
“Approving new coal expansions in the middle of the hottest summer on record is indefensible climate vandalism.
“Today, under the cover of the Liberals tearing each other apart, Labor has approved their 35th fossil fuel project.
“These projects lock in hundreds of millions of tonnes of pollution and push Australia further away from meeting even the weak 2035 emissions target. Labor can’t call itself a climate leader and keep signing off on mines that supercharge the climate crisis.
“There is a stark pattern from Labor who talk up domestic renewables while ticking off on coal or gas projects that wipe out those gains.
“Middlemount’s biodiversity offsets are being used as political cover. You can’t offset extinction, replace old growth riparian systems, hollows or connected wildlife corridors with a ledger entry.
“This Government talks about a ‘just transition’ while handing fossil-fuel companies decades more profit and leaving people on the frontline to pay the cost.
“Big coal and gas are profiting and calling the shots. Labor has to put people and the planet ahead of corporate donations and fossil-fuel lobbying.
“The Australian Greens will continue to fight every approval that locks Australia into a hotter, more dangerous future. No more coal and gas.
“Real climate action means stopping approvals that make hitting emissions targets impossible and protecting the wildlife and communities already paying the price.”