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May 2014
Coalpac – Invincible and Cullen Valley Mine proposal
The Coalpac project is a proposal to expand two coal mines owned by Coalpac, near Lithgow, NSW. In May 2014, The Australia Institute made a submission to the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process, focussing on the economic assessment of the project. Key points: The coal price used in the EIS is either inaccurate or assumes
Angus Place Colliery Extension Proposal
Angus Place is an underground coal mines near Lithgow, NSW. It is owned and operated by Centennial Coal, a subsidiary of Thai energy company, Banpu. The mine is located in environmentally sensitive areas, adjacent to several state forests and near the Gardens of Stone National Park. The Australia Institute made submissions on the Environmental Impact
Springvale Colliery Extension Proposal
Springvale Colliery is an underground coal mine near Lithgow, NSW. It is owned and operated by Centennial Coal, a subsidiary of Thai energy company, Banpu. The mine is located in environmentally sensitive areas, adjacent to several state forests and near the Gardens of Stone National Park. The Australia Institute made submissions on the Environmental Impact
SUBMISSION: Inquiry into environmental offsets
The Australia Institute has made a submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Environment and Communications, References Committee Inquiry into environmental offsets. We argue that while offsets are often imperfect and need to be well managed, they have a place in environmental management. Our submission relates to the economics of environmental offsets and our experience
SUBMISSION: Streamlining environmental regulation, ‘green tape’ and one stop shops
The Australia Institute has made a submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on the Environment inquiry, Streamlining environmental regulation, ‘green tape’, and one stop shops. Our submission draws on earlier TAI research conducted jointly with the Minerals Council of Australia, which found that there is considerable room for improvement in environmental regulation. A
April 2014
SUBMISSION: Cobbora coal project
The Cobbora proposal is to develop an open cut coal mine near the towns of Gulgong and Dunedoo, east of Dubbo, NSW. The mine would extract up to 20 million tonnes per annum of run of mine coal. The mine is proposed by the NSW government-owned Cobbora Holding Company. Our submission focuses mainly on the
March 2014
SUBMISSION: Wallarah 2 coal project
The proposal is to develop an underground coal mine near Wyong, situated between Newcastle and Sydney, NSW. The mine would extract up to 5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of coal which would require little further processing to reach saleable quality. The mine has attracted controversy due to its potential impacts on the local environment,
Briefing Note: Debunking Solving for ‘x’ – The NSW Gas Supply Cliff
This week energy company AGL released a research paper entitled Solving for ‘x’ – the New South Wales Gas Supply Cliff. The paper contains plenty of economic terms and algebra, but these merely serve to provide camouflage for another reiteration of the gas industry’s claims – that NSW is running low on gas and the
Fracking the future
The purpose of this paper is to bust the gas industry’s myths about coal seam gas (CSG). The gas industry has been prolific in putting out exaggerated claims about CSG’s economic benefits while at the same time staying almost completely silent on the health and environmental risks. This paper will look at both the economic
SUBMISSION: Terminal 4 Project
The Australia Institute’s submission on the Newcastle T4 project focuses on the economic assessment and highlights a number of flaws in the economic modelling. The assessment included the use of export growth rates up to 12 times greater than through the mining boom, estimates of coal exports out to 2083, and inflated estimates of coal
Climate Proofing Your Investments: Moving Funds out of Fossil Fuels
Investments in coal, oil, and gas increase financial risk without increasing returns, according to the new report Climate proofing your investments: Moving funds out of fossil fuels published by The Australia Institute. To meet the internationally-agreed two degree global warming limit, fossil fuel businesses must leave in the ground two-thirds of the reserves currently on their books.
SUBMISSION: New Acland Coal Mine Environmental Impact Statement
The New Acland coal mine is applying to expand its operations in one of Australia’s most productive agricultural regions, the Darling Downs. The mine has been controversial since it began, in its impact on the agricultural economy, and in clearing out the town of Acland where now only one resident remains. The New Acland Mine
February 2014
SUBMISSION: Emissions Reduction Fund Green Paper
Competitive grant schemes can be effectively used to reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions but they are not sufficient to produce large scale abatement at a low cost. Competitive grant schemes are best used in conjunction with other policies including a broad based carbon price. The carbon price is able to achieve large scale abatement at
SUBMISSION: North Galilee Basin Rail Project
The North Galilee Basin Rail Project is a proposal to build and operate a standard gauge rail line from the northern Galilee Basin to the port of Abbot Point, some 300 kilometres away. The project would have the capacity to move 100 million tonnes per annum of thermal coal, largely sourced from mines proposed by
Stratford Extension Project
The Stratford Extension Project proposes to extend an existing coal mine in the Gloucester Valley, NSW. The Australia Institute made a submission on the economic assessment of the project to the NSW Planning and Assessment Commission in February 2014. Key points: · Economic assessment is based on extremely optimistic coal prices of AUD$178
SUBMISSION: Senate Standing Committee on Direct Action Plan
The political class in Australia needs to overcome its tendency for picking individual climate change policies. Instead we need to take a broader approach to climate change that includes a range of policies if we hope to do our fair share in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in order to avoid dangerous climate change.
January 2014
Warkworth Coal Project Consent Modification 6: DPI addendum report
In November 2013 The Australia Institute made a submission on the application to modify the consent conditions of Rio Tinto’s Warkworth mine, near Singleton in the Hunter Valley, NSW. This modification allows the mine to expand into areas that the Land and Environment Court had disallowed, as the economic benefits of doing so did not
December 2013
Power down
Until 2010 – for well over a century, through two world wars and the Great Depression – the quantity of electricity used in Australia each year was greater than the year before. In the three years since 2010, the quantity used each year has been less than the year before, and there is no evidence
Biting the land that feeds you
The New Acland coal mine is a controversial project 157km west of Brisbane, Queensland. It is located next to the township of Acland and 10km from the larger centre of Oakey. The mine is controversial because of its location in an agricultural area and the impacts it has on the local community, farms and health.
Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project Submission
The Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project is a proposal to mine up to 60 million tonnes per year of thermal coal from the Galilee Basin in Queensland, for export via associated rail and port infrastructure. As the project will have a major impact on the local and potentially global environment, an environmental impact statement,
November 2013
SUBMISSION: The MRRT should not be abolished
Submission to the Senate Inquiry into Minerals Resource Rent Tax Repeal and Other Measures Bill 2013.
Is fracking good for your health?
It’s becoming increasingly clear that Australia needs to change the way it uses energy and many of those changes will be taking place over the next decade. Our current reliance on coal is unsustainable, while Australia’s considerable reserves of unconventional gas – tight, shale and coal seam gas (CSG) – are raising controversy after being
Warkworth Consent Modification 6
In November 2013 The Australia Institute made a submission on the application to modify the consent conditions of Rio Tinto’s Warkworth mine, near Singleton in the Hunter Valley, NSW. This modification allows the mine to expand into areas that the Land and Environment Court had disallowed, as the economic benefits of doing so did not
October 2013
What Australians don’t know about CSG
Coal seam gas (CSG) is a controversial way of extracting natural gas. While many Australians hold strong views against it, a surprising number are only vaguely aware of the issue. In addition to feeling generally uninformed, many people also express unease about CSG because of the controversy surrounding it. A survey conducted by The Australia
August 2013
Coal and gas mining in Australia
Mining has always been an important part of the Australian economy. What has changed is the unprecedented scale and pace of its expansion. This is already irrevocably altering the Australian landscape and affecting food production, water security and communities across the nation. The coal seam gas fields approved to date in Queensland will cover tens
July 2013
$2.9 billion CSG surcharge
Gladstone’s manufacturing industry is likely to pay up to $2.9 billion more for gas over the next 10 years than it otherwise would have, as a result of gas exports from Curtis Island.This is on top of the impacts of the resource boom already being felt by the region’s manufacturing industry, including the high Australian
Logging or carbon credits
For several decades, the alternative commercial and economic uses and management of Australia’s native forests have generated considerable debate. In the past five years, this debate has sharpened as the native forest sector has contracted in response to increased competition in international and domestic wood product markets. New carbon markets are also emerging that could
Cooking up a price rise
Gas prices in eastern Australia are going to rise substantially. These price rises are not driven by a lack of supply but rather by an increase in demand. Once the eastern Australian gas market is connected to the world gas market, domestic gas producers will be able to sell at the world netback price –
June 2013
Climate of the Nation 2013: Australian attitudes on climate change
The Climate Institute has been measuring the ebbs and flows of Australian attitudes to climate change and its solutions through its Climate of the Nation research and reports since 2007.