Gas. Expensive. Dirty. Damaging.

 

And yet, the gas industry is still getting the green light from our Governments. Last week, we released our latest report, Passing Gas: Why Renewables are the Future. It shows that as Australia experiences both the impacts of COVID-19 and worsening extreme weather, extracting and burning more gas will put more Australians in harm’s way.   Click here to read how burning gas is worsening climate change in Australia and find out how you can get involved to end new gas exploration. Last month, the Federal Government gave approval to the Narrabri Gas Project (1), one of a series of major gas projects proposed for the coming years. This is unacceptable. Gas is driving Australia’s contribution to catastrophic climate change. The ongoing burning of gas will lock-in further dangerous climate impacts like the Black Summer we experienced. This means there is no need for, and must not be, any new fossil fuel expansion in Australia. The facts are undeniable: Burning coal, oil and gas is causing rising global temperatures, hotter conditions, and worsening extreme weather events.  72% of gas produced in Australia is exported, which pushes up the price of the gas we use at home, and is the cause of our rising power bills.  Australia’s gas export industry consumes more gas processing its own product than the entire Australian manufacturing sector. What a ludicrous waste of energy! Renewables are now the cheapest and cleanest form of new energy, and the cost of batteries’ main components has fallen more than 90% in the past decade.  The international gas market is in crisis, and Australia is dangerously exposed to job losses and ongoing power price volatility. Over the past year, we’ve worked with journalists, politicians, doctors, unions, businesses and many other climate groups to expose the significant economic, health, and environmental risks associated with new gas.  And thousands of our incredible supporters have joined us - sharing our content, signing petitions, emailing your MP, or adding your name to our submissions.  The results speak for themselves: 77% of Australians understand the opportunity for jobs and investment in clean energy that flow from taking climate action (2). We don't need new gas when renewables are cheaper and cleaner.  But to get the Government to listen to the experts and abandon its dangerous plans to expand gas, we need to be louder. We need to show them the type of world we want to live in - one powered by renewables, not dirty fossil fuels. And for that, we’ll need your help: Here are three things you can do today to help put a stop to the Government’s plans to develop gas in Australia:  Educate yourself on the facts by reading our report to understand why gas is so polluting and dangerous. Share our report with your local state MP and ask them to commit to publicly opposing new gas exploration and develop a plan to phase out gas. Start a conversation about gas with your friends or family to help them understand why we don’t need any new gas and all we have to gain by investing in renewables instead. Yes, I'll take action. We must stop the gas industry from cancelling out the gains won by Australia’s renewables boom. This report will underpin our strategic campaign against the gas industry for many months and years to come, but we have a long fight ahead of us. We need to work together to demonstrate all the ways that renewables outshine gas. We’ve seen public opinion turn against the coal industry and we’re seeing big shifts against gas as well. We need your help to keep up the pressure.  Thanks for standing with us.  Tim Baxter Report Author & Senior Researcher - Climate Solutions Climate Council P.S. Want to find out more about gas? Check out some press coverage our report received across The Age, SBS, The New Daily, AAP and The Conversation. References: Federal government gives environmental approval to controversial $3.6bn Narrabri gas project, The Guardian, 24 November Climate of the Nation 2020, The Australia Institute