[Greens-Media] FW: MEDIA RELEASE: Greens Deputy launches national CSG policy in Toowoomba ahead of the election

[O'Neill, Abraham (Sen L. Waters)]

From: O'Neill, Abraham (Sen L. Waters)
Sent: Tuesday, 28 June 2016 11:09 AM
To: Vandeleur, Monique (Sen L. Waters)
Subject: MEDIA RELEASE: Greens Deputy launches national CSG policy in Toowoomba ahead of the election


MEDIA RELEASE

28 June 2016

Greens Deputy launches national CSG policy in Toowoomba ahead of the election

Qld Senator Larissa Waters, the Greens Deputy Leader, today visited Toowoomba to launch the party's comprehensive national coal and coal seam gas policy ahead of the election this weekend.

Standing with Greens Candidate for Groom, Antonia van Geuns<http://greens.org.au/qld/antonia-van-geuns>, Senator Waters said the Greens stood firmly against new coal and coal seam gas and for a ban on fracking.

"We Greens will always put farmers ahead of the big mining companies' profits, which mostly flow offshore, and unlike the Liberal, National and Labor parties, we don't take donations from coal and gas companies," Senator Waters said.

"We Greens stand firmly on the side of landholders, who appallingly still don't have a legal right to refuse mining companies' access to explore and, then later, mine their land in Queensland.

"The Greens have introduced three separate bills to give landholders including traditional owners the right to say 'no' to coal and gas, and to ban fracking  but the old parties have failed to support us each time.

"With strong rural and regional community support on our side, we Greens will continue to stand up for farmers and their rights to protect their land, water and the climate.

"Evidence of alarming health impacts on people living in close proximity to unconventional gas fields in Queensland is mounting, we're are calling for a full investigation of these health impacts," Senator Waters said.

Greens Candidate for Groom, Antonia van Geuns<http://greens.org.au/qld/antonia-van-geuns>, said coal and coal seam gas were threatening agriculture in the region.

"The Acland coal mine expansion on the Darling Downs threatens to eat up even more prime farmland, and the CSG industry's creeping expansion around Hopeland is threatening our food bowl.

"We have viable job-rich alternatives in clean energy that don't cost agricultural jobs. Our plan for at least 90% clean energy by 2030 would create thousands of new jobs, mostly in regional areas.

"We've also put forward a $1 billion Clean Energy Transition fund to help workers and communities adjust to the transition with training for new jobs and plans to attract new investment to affected regions," Ms van Geuns said.

Contacts:
Senator Waters (Monique Vandeleur) 0419 626 725
Antonia van Geuns<http://greens.org.au/qld/antonia-van-geuns> (Ben Pennings) 0418 164 014

The policy is online here: http://greens.org.au/beyond-coal-and-gas