Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Coal mining: Court rules in climate change considerations

This is the biggest thing to happen in global warming in Australia, so here it is verbatim: :::[ABC News]

Court finds climate change relevant to coal mine approval

A Newcastle environmentalist says a court ruling today means the New South Wales Government must take climate change into account when considering whether to approve new coal mines.

Peter Gray went to the New South Wales Land and Environment Court to challenge the environmental assessment for the proposed Anvill Hill coal mine in the Hunter Valley.

He argued the assessment was inadequate, because it did not take into account the impact that burning the coal would have on climate change.

The court voided the Government's decision that the environmental assessment was adequate.

Mr Gray is claiming victory, but says the ruling will not stop the mine from going ahead.

"It's certainly a setback for the process, I think it means a fresh look has to be taken at the mine," he said.

"The Government needs to consider the impacts that it will have on climate change so I do think it's a strong strike against Centennial Coal.'


The political and commercial repercussions of the Land and Environment Court ruling are being quickly felt as both the NSW and Federal Governments scramble to make sense of it. What, they didn't see the science coming? Not even the movie? But business has been asking for price signals on carbon for a while now. Now we know why.

That was late Monday. This is COD Tuesday:
The New South Wales Government says a court ruling on a coal mine proposed for the Hunter Valley could have significant implications for a range of industries, including mining.

and in federal politics, flushed from the gains of the Victorian Greens over the weekend,
Greens leader Bob Brown has attacked the Federal Opposition for voting against a motion to cap coal exports from Newcastle.

and scurrying from the light,
Federal Environment Minister Senator Ian Campbell says a proposed amendment to federal environment laws to reflect a New South Wales Environment Court ruling is not a solution to climate change.

This blog is heating up at a rate of 0.2 degrees a decade. Come back often.

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