Parents for Climate says the decision to push back a determination on HVO and reopen public submissions shows the extraordinary weight of community and environmental concern surrounding the largest coal project ever proposed in NSW. But rather than respond to that scrutiny with a compromise that could protect jobs while limiting some of the project's enormous climate damage, Glencore and Yancoal are refusing to budge, giving an all-or-nothing demand of another 19 years of coal.
Parents for Climate CEO and father of two Nic Seton said:
“Another 19 years of coal is not a transition plan for Hunter communities, it’s a ransom note. The IPC was right to ask what is actually needed for an orderly transition for HVO workers, suppliers and the community, rather than simply accepting another two decades of mining as the only possible answer. But when presented with an opportunity to consider a compromise, Glencore and Yancoal have dug in and insisted that anything materially shorter than the full 19 years doesn't maximise their profits.”
“Throughout this process, Glencore has presented itself as a responsible employer committed to HVO workers and the Hunter community. But when asked to contemplate a minimum extension in the best interests of the mine's workforce, suppliers and the local community, Glencore answered with what its’ profits need; nearly two decades. This decision was made on the basis that it has no plans to make the community more secure without maximum mining. Hunter workers deserve better than having their economic security tied to the profit-maximising demands of a multinational coal company.”
“If 1,500 workers are facing uncertainty because their economic security depends on another mine extension, that should concern all of us. The Hunter has powered NSW for generations and its workers and families deserve a properly funded, long-term plan for secure jobs, investment and economic opportunity that doesn't rise or fall on the next coal approval. The NSW Government should show the courage and commit to a properly funded transition plan so that Hunter coal communities are not beholden to one extension after another.”
“The extra time should also be used to confront the full cost of HVO. The proposed extension would generate around 809 million tonnes of climate pollution, which our analysis estimates would cause around $212 billion in global climate damage, equivalent to almost $120,000 for every child in NSW today.”
“No parent would knowingly hand their child the stress and burden of a $120,000 inheritance debt for something they didn't buy and won't benefit from. Governments shouldn't either. We need a fair deal for our kids.”
“There is something fundamentally wrong with an economic argument that counts the potential revenue from coal but leaves out the costs NSW families and their children will be forced to carry. Not to mention the additional anxiety, uncertainty and disruption families will be shouldering though increased climate impacts as a result of this project. Separate analysis has found that once higher carbon costs are accounted for, they can almost entirely wipe out HVO's claimed $5.71 billion net economic benefit to NSW.”
“NSW families should not be forced into a false choice between 1,500 jobs and our children's future. A fair deal means rejecting HVO while giving Hunter workers the secure jobs and economic future they deserve. That's the job of government, to protect its people, not multinational mining profits. Put simply, the government must choose whose interests it serves; the interests of NSW families versus the profits of multinational coal companies.”
Parents for Climate is calling for HVO to be rejected and for the NSW Government to deliver a Fair Deal For Our Kids by stopping new and expanded coal mines, setting binding emissions targets for the coal sector and properly funding a fair transition for coal communities.