CLIMATIC CHANGES

Labor climate policy put fear of God in people and alienated blue-collar base

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Original article by Greg Brown
The Australian – Page: 7 : 15-Oct-19

Cathy O’Toole lost the Queensland seat of Herbert at the 18 May federal election; it was the only seat in central and north Queensland that Labor lost in a dismal performance in the state. O’Toole says Labor must rethink its climate change policy in the wake of the election loss, arguing that the policy had alienated Labor’s traditional blue-collar voter base. She has ruled out contesting the seat at the next election.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Pollution at top of PM’s ocean plan

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Original article by Dennis Shanahan, Graham Lloyd
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 26-Sep-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has told the United Nations’ General Assembly that problems such as plastics pollution and illegal fishing are a more "immediate threat" to the world’s oceans than climate change. Morrison argued that industry must take a leadership role in developing commercially sustainable ways of ensuring that plastics are recycled. His address to the UN has coincided with the release of a new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on global warming’s impact on sea levels.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED NATIONS. GENERAL ASSEMBLY, INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATION FOUNDATION INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, WORLD WIDE FUND FOR NATURE AUSTRALIA, PRATT INDUSTRIES (USA) INCORPORATED, MINDEROO FOUNDATION

Cbus’ climate change quotas queried

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 6-Sep-19

Construction industry superannuation fund Cbus will allocate one per cent of its $52 billion worth of funds under management to climate change initiatives. Its decision has been queried by Senator James Paterson, who said that establishing quotas seems like a bad idea; Paterson is the chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services. Scott Donald, the director of the Centre for Law, Markets & Regulation at the University of New South Wales, says Cbus is not violating any laws by making such a decision.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND, AUSTRALIA. JOINT COMMITTEE ON CORPORATIONS AND FINANCIAL SERVICES, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Greens stir Gillard ghosts

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 1-May-19

Australian Greens leader Richard Di Natale will use a National Press Club speech on 1 May to urge Labor to form a coalition with the minor party to address the issue of climate change. Former prime minister Julia Gillard struck a similar alliance with the Greens to form a minority government after the 2010 election. The Greens have questioned Labor’s proposal to use international carbon credits as part of its target of reducing carbon emissions by 45 per cent on 2005 levels by 2030.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED AUSTRALIA PARTY, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, ONE NATION PARTY, INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA)

Adani mine, climate create great divide

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Original article by Ben Potter
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 11-Apr-19

Roy Morgan surveys of more than 40,000 Australians, broken down by federal electorates, show a much higher share of Canberrans, Melburnians and Sydneysiders nominate global warming and climate change as one of their top three election issues than voters in Brisbane and regional Queensland. Almost 38 per cent of voters in the nation’s capital, 31 per cent of Melbourne’s voters and nearly 28 per cent of Sydneysiders include the issue of climate change as one of their three top issues in the Morgan survey, compared to just 22 per cent in Brisbane and 17 per cent in regional Queensland. Nationally global warming and climate change is the fourth most important issue, nominated by 25 per cent, the survey – commissioned by the Australian Futures Project, a non-profit backed by wealthy families and La Trobe University and "dedicated to ending short-termism in Australia" – finds.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN FUTURES PROJECT, LA TROBE UNIVERSITY

The Saltbush Club: skilled and thinking Australians concerned at the huge costs and unproven benefits of the climate, energy and infrastructure policies on both sides of Federal Parliament

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Original article by Viv Forbes
pickeringpost.com – Page: Online : 16-Nov-18

A newly formed lobby group called the Saltbush Club is calling for Australia to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. Jerry Ellis, founding chairman of the Club and a former chairman of BHP, contends that Australia’s efforts to reach its Paris targets have led to higher electricity prices and unreliable power supply. Hugh Morgan, a former CEO of Western Mining and director of the Saltbush Club, states that the Climate Agreement is really about the transfer of wealth to less developed nations. Saltbush organiser Viv Forbes claims that the United Nations is seeking to cripple western industry with high and unreliable electricity in a “futile attempt to control global climate”.

To learn more about the Saltbush Club please contact:
Viv Forbes (forbes@carbon-sense.com).

Also read a more detailed article in regards to the Saltbush Club available here: http://pickeringpost.com/story/the-saltbush-club/8689

CORPORATES
THE SALTBUSH CLUB, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WESTERN MINING CORPORATION, UNITED NATIONS

IPCC coal call not for us: PM

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Original article by Graham Lloyd
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 9-Oct-18

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has concluded that coal-fired power generation would need to be almost completely phased out worldwide by 2050 if global warming is to be limited to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The IPCC’s special report argues that meeting this target would require global net human carbon ­dioxide emissions to be reduced to zero by 2050. However, Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Australia is not bound by any of the report’s conclusions, while Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says removing coal from the nation’s energy mix would result in power blackouts on the east coast.

CORPORATES
INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, GLOBAL CARBON PROJECT, CSIRO, GLOBAL CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE INSTITUTE LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATION FOUNDATION INCORPORATED

Rio links coal exit to policy on climate

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 3-May-18

Rio Tinto chairman Simon Thompson has conceded that the potential impact of climate change policy on the future value of coal assets contributed to its decision to divest its thermal coal assets in New South Wales. Rio Tinto sold the Hunter Valley coal assets for $US2.69bn ($A3.58bn) in 2017. Thompson also noted at the AGM that Rio Tinto is in the process of exiting fossil fuels completely, and he highlighted the company’s progress in reducing its greenhouse gas emissions.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, GLENCORE PLC, AUSTRALASIAN CENTRE FOR CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY, LGSS PTY LTD, CHURCH OF ENGLAND, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, UNITED STATES. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, GREAT BRITAIN. SERIOUS FRAUD OFFICE

BHP quits coal body over climate views

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 30 : 6-Apr-18

BHP Billiton has confirmed that it will cease being a member of the World Coal ­Association, citing factors such as differing stances on energy and climate policy. BHP has also indicated that it derives little benefit from being a member of the WCA. However, the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility’s executive director Brynn O’Brien has criticised BHP’s decision to remain a member of the US Chamber of Commerce. BHP said that while the USCC’s stance on climate policy still differs to its own, membership of the organisation has significant benefits.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, WORLD COAL ASSOCIATION, UNITED STATES CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, AUSTRALASIAN CENTRE FOR CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY, MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, APPLE INCORPORATED

Turnbull tells China: rein in North Korea

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Original article by Simon Benson, Ean Higgins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 10-Jul-17

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had a private meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Group of 20 summit in Germany. Turnbull urged China to exert its influence on North Korea amid growing tensions over its missile program. Meanwhile, Turnbull has expressed disappointment that the G20’s final communique did not include a statement on North Korea, despite "unanimous condemnation" of the North Korean regime among G20 member nations. US policy on climate change was also reflected in the communique, which did not have a unanimous position on the issue.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, GROUP OF TWENTY (G-20), UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, GREAT BRITAIN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DCNS SA