To Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Environment Minister Greg Hunt, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, the coal industry, Satan, and anyone else who seems to think this is a good idea,

I can’t believe I have to sit here and write this letter. As taxpayers we place a lot of trust in you, our leaders, to speak for us and do right by us and our country. So I’m thinking maybe you should’ve already come to the conclusion on your own that trying to push through a massive coal mine and dredging our beautiful Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is a stupid and irresponsible idea. But apparently not.

So let me lay it out for you.

The Great Barrier Reef is an incredible natural wonder, one that we are incredibly lucky to have on our doorstep. But it’s not ‘ours’. For starters, it’s the home of countless billions of teeny tiny defenceless Australians. We are entrusted – by the rest of the world – to be the custodians of their home and take care of it so that everyone and future generations can come and enjoy it for themselves. This is what ‘World Heritage’ is all about, in case you had forgotten.

“The Queensland Government plans to dredge millions of tonnes of seafloor from within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area and dump the spoil right next to the Reef and near nationally significant wetlands.” … At least you changed your minds from dumping it ON the Reef and IN the wetlands. Well done. *slow clap*

Tearing up the habitat of whales, dugongs, manta rays and international honeymooners is not cool, no matter how you look at it. And seriously; you want to do all this for COAL?! When the rest of the world is trying to find cleaner alternatives… what is this, Industrial Revolution:Reloaded? Have we learned nothing from the past 200 years of environmental destruction, species loss and climate change? Even if we don’t burn it ourselves we’d still be responsible for it; we can’t beat up developing countries for using fossil fuels with one hand while selling them those fossil fuels with the other.

Not to mention other environmental impacts at the proposed Carmichael mine site on groundwater and natural and cultural values, plus that it’s doubtful the mine would even be viable. Risking the Reef for a project that might never happen is bloody ridiculous and this proposal should be rejected. That is a no-brainer, and if you get it wrong it’ll be, like, so embarrassing.

The science is clear: we can have the reef or coal, we can’t have both. And we don’t want coal. Please do the job we’re paying you to do and put an end to this proposal to push through the Carmichael coal mine and to dredge and dump at Abbot Point.

Yours sincerely,

– Michelle
Queenslander, Australian, nature lover and voter.

 

Further rant:

If you, gentle reader, also wish to raise your voice in opposition to this shit-for-brains disaster of an idea please do so here.