Big Gas Don't Surf
Big Gas is making a last stand right across Australia. As the world moves toward clean energy, fossil fuel giants are racing to develop new resources before their time runs out. Surf and coastal communities around Australia are paddling out and standing up to prevent billions of tons of carbon pollution being spewed into the atmosphere. They are standing up for our coasts, oceans and climate.
There is a federal election this year, and the choice for Australian voters should be stark. We should be able to choose between a fossil fuel past and a clean, affordable renewable future… but it won’t be quite that simple. Big Gas has deep pockets and connections to politics and they won’t go quietly. In this election there will be a lot of promises and a lot of false claims, and sorting fact from fiction won’t be easy. But one thing will be clear – at this election we need to vote gas out, and vote climate in.
Gas is a fossil fuel. Extracting, refining and burning gas drives climate change. The expansion of the gas industry in Australia has seen our greenhouse gas emissions rise, not fall.
Every year, the federal government carves out large swathes of our ocean and hands it to gas companies for exploration. In 2021, this included an area only 5km from the world famous 12 Apostles.
Last year, the gas industry in Australia and it’s lobbyists donated almost $1 million to the Liberal, Labor and National Parties.
Gas exploration involves seismic testing which impacts marine life such as whales and dolphins. It can kill or badly injure sealife close by – even lobsters, scallops, and tiny zooplankton kilometres away. While leaks further jepordise these invaluable ecosystems.
Australia is the world’s largest exporter of natural gas, shipping out over 70% of the gas we produce. Yet, Australians pay some of the highest prices in the world for household gas.
Investing in gas doesn’t create long-term jobs. Australia instead has the potential to become a leader in renewable energy.
Renewable energy is booming and now accounts for 32% of generation in Australia’s National Energy Market. This has doubled in four years and has been driven largely by the market, not government policy.
Gas poses a significant threat to the health of our families and communities. The extraction and processing of gas involves hazardous substances that are damaging to our health.
Get Informed
