Yes, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek approved a coal mine. But save the angst for decisions that matter more

Sun, 4 Jun 2023 23:16:17 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/yes-environment-minister-tanya-plibersek-approved-a-coal-mine-but-save-the-angst-for-decisions-that-matter-more-205561>

"The outcry was loud and swift last week after Environment Minister Tanya
Plibersek approved a new coal mine in central Queensland. It’s the first coal
mine Labor has approved since coming to power a year ago.

The project, the Isaac River mine, will extract metallurgical coal to be burned
for steel-making. Environmental groups decried the potential damage the mine
would cause to wildlife, water quality and the climate.

Any new coal mine is inconsistent with the global goal of reaching net-zero
emissions by 2050. But the Isaac River mine is probably the least bad of those
recently under consideration.

The mine would produce only metallurgical coal, which is still needed by the
steel industry, and would operate for just five years. Importantly, we
shouldn’t let controversy over the approval of a small, short-lived mine
distract from more consequential recent decisions on coal – and those still
looming."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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