Media Release – August 10th 2021

IPCC report shows no need for Scarborough gas and that now is the time to begin winding down existing gas facilities

Climate campaigning group, 350 Boorloo Perth, has called for BHP, Woodside and the McGowan Government to abandon the Scarborough gas project and plan a just transition to wind down WA’s existing LNG facilities.

The call from the group comes after the IPCC report showed that greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced dramatically in the next decade if the most dangerous impacts of climate change are to be avoided. 

The report comes as Woodside and BHP plan to reach final investment decisions on Scarborough in the coming months. The project would create 1.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. 

Premier Mark McGowan has stated that ‘Australia needs to step up in response to climate change’. 350 Boorloo Perth campaigner, Anthony Collins, agreed with the sentiment but responded to the Premier’s comments on ABC Perth Radio, by saying that the Premier’s answer to questions about the viability of Scarborough gas are overly simplistic and inadequate. 

“The Premier is confusing existing gas projects with proposed ones. Stopping Woodside’s Scarborough gas project would have no effect on our grid or existing industry. Instead of approving more new fossil fuel projects, this state government should be developing a transition plan to wind down the existing gas facilities over the next decade.

“This IPCC report shows the need for the WA Government to start stepping up in response to climate change. It has been proven time and time again that enacting an energy transition will create more jobs than the ones that will be lost because they are offered by industries on the wane. 

“We need to stop extracting gas, but we’ll need more copper, rare earth metals. We’ll need people installing and maintaining wind turbines, solar panels, and retrofitting buildings. This places WA exceptionally well. 

“It’s clear that the transition must be just, workers need to be adequately protected and re-trained; the state government should be introducing policies now that don’t put the weight of the transition on the shoulders of working people.

Since the IPCC report was released, WA’s Minister for the Environment and Climate Action has given approval for a key component of Woodside’s proposed $16 billion Scarborough LNG project.

We are unsure which part of the IPCC’s code red warning that Amber-Jade Sanderson and Mark McGowan did not understand. 

Approving one of Australia’s biggest threats to climate just two days after such a report is unacceptable. Now is the time for everyone reading this to let our Premier know that a huge new gas project will imperil the safety and health of our children and of the planet.  

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