NSW to ban new coalmines – but will allow existing ones to get even bigger | New South Wales

The New South Wales government will continue to green-light coal mine expansion, effectively rejecting the climate agency’s warning that approving new developments would be inconsistent with the state’s legal emissions targets.

being released A statement about the future of the coal industryThe Labor government has said it will no longer consider proposals for “independent greenfield coal mines” on undeveloped sites. However, expansion and extension of time will continue to be allowed in existing mines.

It said this balanced “energy security, jobs and regional development with the need to reduce emissions and meet NSW’s net zero targets”.

The NSW Minerals Council said the announcement was “very positive”, acknowledging that it had been several years since a greenfield mine was proposed through the state’s planning system.

The state’s natural resources minister, Courtney Houssos, said the strategy meant NSW would remain a reliable supplier of coal “where the market demand is”.

“Coal has powered NSW for more than a century and will continue to support our economy for decades to come,” he said. “As global markets evolve, we are supported by new opportunities, providing workers and communities with confidence about the path ahead.”

In December, the NSW Net Zero Commission said the government should consider the climate impact when making coal mine planning decisions, including the “scope 3” emissions created when coal is exported and burned overseas. It concluded that the new expansions were not consistent with the state’s legal emissions reduction commitments; A 50% reduction from 2005 levels by 2030, a 70% reduction by 2035, and reaching net zero by 2050.

Lock the Gate Alliance’s head of research and investigations, Georgina Woods, said all 18 coal projects in NSW’s planning pipeline were extensions and extensions. None of them were green field projects.

He said the proposed expansions and extensions would create hundreds of millions of tons of greenhouse gas pollution.

Woods said the strategy acknowledged that global coal demand was falling, but did not provide a clear path for the state to support communities most affected by the decline, effectively rejecting advice from the Net Zero Commission ahead of the official government response expected in June.

“The NSW government is using semantics to mask the fact that coal project approvals will continue as usual, even though everyone in the state needs to work harder to reduce pollution and bear the costs of damaging climate change,” he said.

At least eight expansion approvals since 2023 elections

The government has approved at least eight coal expansions and expansions since the 2023 election.

NSW Minerals Council chief executive Stephen Galilee said support for further extensions would be welcomed by “thousands of coal mining workers”.

Almost 90% of the coal mined in NSW is thermal coal, which is burned in power stations to produce electricity. It is of lower quality than the metallurgical coal used in steel production and is thought to be phased out more quickly due to cleaner alternatives.

The government said “while global coal demand is expected to decline over time, coal will continue to be an important part of the NSW economy as renewable energy and industrial processes come online.”

The strategy was released as the state’s Environmental Protection Authority. published rules He said large coal mines would be needed to “directly reduce fossil methane pollution, one of the most potent greenhouse gases accelerating global warming.”

The EPA said high-emission coal mines must capture, treat or convert leaking methane so that it is “less effective and causes less damage when released into the environment.”

“Reducing the amount of fossil methane is one of the fastest ways to limit climate impacts in the near term,” said Tony Chappel, EPA’s managing director.

Lock the Gate says rules have since been watered down consultation draft Last year, these changes violated the duty to protect communities from climate change.

Australian Conservation Foundation campaigner Freja Leonard said the quickest way to manage the state’s carbon budget was to “cut emissions at source”. He said he welcomed the trust’s commitment to not consider applications for greenfield coal mines.

“The NSW government must now plan to phase out coal mining and support coal workers.”