Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I would be very interested to hear some of the solutions proposed by those opposite. They would be as aware as people in my electorate that coal seam gas cannot be wished away. It currently provides around 30 per cent of natural gas supplies for eastern Australia. For those members representing electorates in and around South-East Queensland, around 90 per cent of the natural gas supply for Brisbane and surrounding areas comes from coal seam gas. It is the concern of people in my electorate that, as we exploit these natural resources, as we continue to look for ways of abating methane gas within coalmines around the Illawarra region and as we look for new and alternative less carbon intensive sources of energy, we do it in a way that manages both the energy security interests and the land use interests. I look forward to engaging in this debate on behalf of the constituents that I represent in the electorate of Throsby.

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