Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to take note of the answers given by Minister Cormann to my question, which related to the Adani coalmine. We can still stop the Adani coalmine. My question listed three methods that either this government or the Labor opposition could use to stop this mega coalmine, right when the international scientists are begging us to not put any more coal in the system; right when 58 per cent of Queensland is in drought and doesn't need a water-hungry coalmine; and right when half of the state is on fire from climate induced extreme-weather events.

I listed the three ways under our current weak laws that this mine could be stopped. Of course, the mine could be stopped if Labor would agree with the Greens to simply not let the Galilee Basin be opened up and not let new coalmines proceed. But, even if that is not going to be the case, because they take money from the coalmining companies, this government has the power to overturn the approval for the Adani coalmine. There are three ways they could do that.

There's new information, which is a trigger for the minister to revoke the approval given to the Adani coalmine. There is a whole long list of new information that, legally, could be the basis for that approval to be revoked: whether it's the IPCC's latest climate instalment, which says we are running out of time and cannot afford to mess about and put even more coal into the system; whether it's the evidence about Adani breaching their environmental conditions overseas; or whether it's the evidence about Adani breaching their conditions here in Australia, that they have been investigated for by the federal department and are being prosecuted for by the Queensland government. It beggars belief that both sides of politics are still backing this ridiculous proposal for a company that has a litany of environmental breaches. They both crow about how strong the conditions are. This company has a track record of ignoring those conditions. I take no comfort at all from the minister's think these conditions written down on a piece of paper will be complied with. The company has shown they won't comply with those conditions.

The minister agreed it's also true that they could stop Adani's mega coalmine from going ahead if they simply didn't tick off on their groundwater management plan. Like I said, more than half of our state is in drought. Why should this mine get free groundwater—while everybody else has to pay and tighten their belts—on top of the 12½ billion litres of surface water that they've been granted by the Queensland state government? It shouldn't. It's water management plan could be not approved, and therefore their whole approval would fall over.

The third thing that this government could do—or Labor could commit to doing—is refuse to approve the pipeline for this mine. Again, Adani does not have all of its approvals. This government or the Labor Party could simply commit to reviewing those approvals—to refuse the water pipeline and refuse the water management plan. The people are going to stop this mine, and it's about time you lot got out of the way.