Pauline Hanson (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is not free.

Senator Waters interjecting—

It is not free. Adani have paid in the vicinity of $19 million to the Queensland state government for the use of this water. It is coming out of the river, but the river has to be over a certain level and floodwaters to actually use it. The Adani mining company have actually been to all the farmers around there and have assured them that they will have water security and that the mine will not take water from the farmers. They are quite agreeable with that.

What we are hearing here is scaremongering—again—by the Greens, who want to shut down industry, manufacturing, the farming sector and native vegetation. They want to shut down everything in this country. They want to take this country back to absolutely nothing. In Queensland, where we make about $55 billion from our resources in the state, they want to shut down a mine that is very instrumental and important in bringing money into the economy and, indirectly, about 10,000 jobs. Directly, the mine itself will employ 1,462 people. But the Greens aren't interested in that. They have their jobs in this place and they are not worried about other Queenslanders being able to pay their bills or put a roof over their head.

They continue to raise these issues, and they use mining as if it is going to destroy the Great Barrier Reef. That is another furphy—when it is about 350 miles from the Great Barrier Reef. When mining has been going on for over 100 years and has not destroyed the Barrier Reef, how is this Adani mine all of a sudden going to shut down the Great Barrier Reef? This is just not true. They are scaremongering. That is what this is all about. I have had extensive talks with Adani mining, and I have asked them direct questions. If I thought that this was in any way going to have an impact on the land, on water resources, on the farming sector or on the Great Barrier Reef, I would be the first one standing up and fighting against it.

I have really done some homework on this and I really know what is going to happen. This is not about votes. This is not about shutting our country down, but that is exactly what it is doing. The Greens talk about wanting to put in windfarms, and they want to shut down the mining. Australia has coking coal. A lot of the mining in Queensland is coking coal. The Adani mine is thermo. That goes to energy. Every windmill that is built takes 220 tonnes of coal to build. Why we have coking coal, and why China and others countries want our coking coal, is to use it to make steel. That's why they want it. The best steel in the world comes from our coking coal. If you want to build more windmills around the country and around the world then you need our coal to build them. It is the coking coal that gives us the best steel. If you want to cut out mining in this country, consider where you are going to get your windmills from. It takes 220 tonnes of coal to make a windmill in this country. Stop spreading the lies. I say to you—through you, Mr President—stop spreading your lies and fearmongering and stop trying to say that the whole world is coming to an end. It's not coming to an end. It will come to an end if the Greens ever get control of this parliament.