Clive Palmer’s Waratah Coal has applied to unleash a new climate-wrecking coal fired power station for 50 years! On the 2nd November 2023 the Queensland Department of Environment and Science refused the environmental approval for Waratah Coal's proposed Galilee Power Station, whilst the Department of State Development issued conditions to support its approval.
Queensland’s Deputy Premier Steven Miles has the sole power to approve or reject this climate-wrecking project but has delayed the decision for 2 years.
According to the environment department decision, the power station:
- would sit among the top 100 greenhouse gas emission sources in Australia.
- will contribute towards irreversible climate change impacts that are anticipated to undermine biological diversity and ecological integrity.
- would be the second highest emitter of total scope 1 (being the greenhouse gas emissions that are the emissions released to the atmosphere as a direct result of the activity, or series of activities at a facility level). in comparison with Queensland’s existing coal-fired power stations.
A new coal fired power station will take away thousands of clean energy jobs and make it impossible for Queensland to meet its 70% renewable energy target by 2032. Increased carbon pollution will threaten the Great Barrier Reef and tourism industry, damage our health and supercharge extreme weather events.