2017-02-03
The Australian Greens said today that using the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility to bankroll fake “clean coal” power stations in Queensland as Resources Minister Matthew Canavan has suggested today would be a betrayal of the North.
“Northern Queenslanders are facing a jobs crisis, but we need real jobs, not fake jobs.
“Handing public funds to coal billionaires to bankroll un-economic ‘clean coal’ power stations or the Adani mega mine would be a betrayal.
“‘Clean coal’ is a lie, just like ‘light cigarettes’. It’s just as dirty and dangerous, but comes with a healthy-sounding label.
“North Queensland is rich in sunshine, and locals know that renewable energy jobs are the future.
“We know that to save the Reef and the 70,000 jobs it supports, we need renewable energy, not more coal.
“They know that propping up coal is like trying to deal with the rise of the internet by subsidising the fax machine industry.
“We need a transition plan for the North that looks after workers and communities as coal declines, and the Geens will fight to stop public funds being wasted on clean coal or on the dangerous Adani mega mine.
Contact: Lauren Gillin 0419 626 725
Media Release Mining and Resources