Federal Greens Leader Adam Bandt has voiced his support for a recent blockade of the Port of Newcastle, maintaining that the future of the Australian environment was contingent on such protests.
His support comes despite police arresting over 100 protestors, including a church minister.
“They’re fighting to stop more floods and bushfires in this country,” Mr. Bandt said, in comments obtained by Sky News.
“People here know that we’re nearing a climate tipping point, and that coal and gas are fuelling the climate crisis.”
Mr. Bandt himself joined the blockade on Saturday by kayaking out with protestors.
“The feeling here is just absolutely electric. There’s nothing like people power as a good anti-depressant. When governments won’t act, people will and it feels great to be part of it.”
On Saturday, hundreds of protestors paddled out on kayaks, surfboards, and pontoons to block the shipping lanes directly outside the port, aiming to stop coal exports from leaving Newcastle.
The organisers Rising Tide—a climate activist group—said over 1,500 people were present at the protest and claimed that they stopped the export of 500,000 tonnes of coal from the port.
The Port of Newcastle has not confirmed the economic ramifications of the protest but has reported that 10 ships were delayed in entering the channel to make deliveries.
Local police have taken action to reprimand those involved in the 30-hour blockade, arresting over 100 protestors who refused to vacate the area after the agreed 4 p.m. deadline.
NSW Police initially agreed to give permission to Rising Tide to stage the protest after months of negotiations.
Of the 109 persons arrested, one of them is a 97-year-old minister of the Uniting Church, a Christian denomination known for its more progressive stances in Australia, particularly on climate change.
In 2021, the Uniting Church Assembly implemented a “Climate Action Plan” that committed the organisation to reduce its carbon footprint by 2040 by cutting back greenhouse gas emissions by 5 percent annually.
“For many years, the Uniting Church has spoken out about the need for greater action on climate change and to care for God’s creation. We also acknowledge that our words are not enough. This Climate Action Plan is intended to drive that action”, the Church’s website reads.
Police officers question protestors after being arrested on the water as they attempted to blockade the access to the coal port in protest for climate action in Newcastle, Australia on Nov. 26, 2023. Roni Bintang/Getty Images
Bandt’s Activism
Mr. Bandt has long thrown his weight behind climate-related demonstrations.In August, he called for the Australian public to “embrace the importance of protest and civil disobedience” to prevent the Albanese Labor government from making concessions on their climate policies by reopening fossil fuel mines and power plants in the wake of a cost of living crisis.
On Nov. 17, Mr. Bandt partook in School Strike 4 Climate, an organised protest in which thousands of students nationwide took the day off to voice their concerns about fossil fuels.
“Thousands of students are on strike for a safe climate and they’ve got a really straightforward message,” Mr. Bandt said at the strike in Melbourne.
“Stop opening coal and gas Labor. Coal and gas are the leading causes of the climate crisis. If we keep opening coal and gas, then we risk pushing the planet past tipping points where we won’t be able to recover.”
In Sydney, the strike entailed hundreds of students gathering to march their way to federal environment minister Tanya Plibersek’s local office in Surry Hills to advocate further action on climate change from the government.
This is despite the Albanese government already taking major initiatives to transform the national energy grid in favour of renewables and enshrining its climate policies into law.
Labor vs. Greens
In 2022, the government passed its Climate Change Bill through the House of Representatives, making its emissions reduction targets of 43 percent by 2030 and net zero by 2050 legally sacrosanct.Nonetheless, the Greens have found themselves at odds with Labor’s climate policies because of their reluctance to curtail the production of fossil fuels absolutely.
This year, the Albanese government has approved a number of expansions for both metallurgical and thermal coal mines in Queensland.
Minister for the Environment and Water Plibersek has defended criticism of the approvals on the basis that her government must make decisions in accordance with federal environmental law, which does not currently allow for the swift nor feasible blocking of such developments.
There are also state Labor’s efforts to keep Eraring Power Station open in NSW.
Eraring—a coal-fired power station situated near Lake Macquarie—is currently set to close in August 2025. The power station is effectively owned by private equity firm Brookfield Asset Management after its acquisition by Origin Energy.
The NSW Labor government led by Chris Minns, is currently in talks with both Brookfield and Origin to potentially extend the lifespan of the power station using taxpayer subsidies.
The Minns government is under pressure to keep Eraring open considering it is Australia’s largest power station, accounting for 7.9 percent of the country’s energy, according to Origin estimates.
SA Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has criticised Labor for these energy decisions, specifically taking aim at Ms. Plibersek.
“Another day, another coal mine approved by the so-called Environment Minister,” Ms. Hanson-Young said.
“Every time this government approves a new coal or gas project they are risking our River Murray, our Reef, and the safety of our children,” she claimed.
