by Oscar Delaney and Monique Jeffs
We knew taking on a mega-mining magnate wouldn’t be easy, and last week we had our first taste of the legal battle to come.
On Friday, Palmer’s lawyers argued in the Land Court that young people could not object to the human rights impacts of a coal mining application.
Palmer’s company, Waratah Coal, plans to construct a massive 40-megatonne-a-year thermal coal mine in the Galilee Basin on Wangan and Jagalingou Country.
The W&J Family Council have been leading the fight against new coal in the Galilee Basin from the beginning and we stand in solidarity with them in this fight.
The Waratah coal mine will not only destroy the Bimblebox Nature reserve, an area with critical importance to maintaining biodiversity but will also make a devastating contribution to climate change.
Clive’s lawyers attempted to leverage legal technicalities to urge the Land Court to strike out the human rights grounds of our legal challenge. They claimed that the Land Court is not the place to consider the human rights impacts of building a new coal mine; one that will roughly cover 80 times the area of the Brisbane CBD.
The Land Court adjourned to consider the matter, with a decision on whether human rights arguments can be included expected within weeks. You can read more on the full legal details here.
Clive does not want to face young people over the potentially devastating human rights impacts of his coal mine
It would seem Clive does not want to face young people over the potentially devastating climate impacts of his proposed coal mine on our human rights and is trying to prevent those arguments from being heard in the courts. This coal project puts our lives, communities and First Nation people’s culture at risk; we deserve to have our voices heard and we will not be silenced.
If we are to stay below 1.5°C of warming that scientist think is needed to avoid catastrophic climate impacts, we must ensure all existing coal, oil and gas fossil fuel reserves stay in the ground. Our communities in Queensland are already experiencing the devasting effects of bushfires, floods and heatwaves that will only get more severe as warming continues. Yet, Clive does not want anyone to object to the human rights ramifications of a new coal mine?
Youth Verdict will keep fighting to uphold the law and protect the future of Queensland’s young people from climate change.
The burning of fossil fuels is one of the largest contributions to climate change and the number one threat to our futures. Youth Verdict will keep fighting to uphold the law and protect the future of Queensland’s young people from climate change. We stand strong, united in our commitment to climate justice and conviction that a better world is possible.
Youth Verdict is a grassroots collective of young people from across Queensland concerned about climate change and how it will impact our future – potentially destroying our homes, our livelihoods and our communities. We are objecting to Clive Palmer’s proposed mine in the Queensland Land Court on the grounds that the mine’s contribution to climate change will violate our human rights to life and a safe future.