“The failure of our governments to act on climate change is forcing tourism operators to explore costly, localised, short-term fixes that haven’t been fully scientifically tested,” Greenpeace Australia Pacific campaigner, Alix Foster Vander Elst, said.
“It’s completely understandable that tourism operators are looking at all options to save their livelihoods but it’s ridiculous that the Queensland and federal governments are working against them by supporting the Carmichael coal mine to export millions of tonnes of coal out through the Reef.
“The Carmichael coal mine would be Australia’s largest and there’s no way it should be allowed to go ahead when the situation is so dire on the Reef that it has gotten to the stage that ideas like pumping cold water are being considered.
“We can protect the Reef’s 70 000 tourism jobs and create tens of thousands of new jobs in renewable energy by investing in clean energy, which is booming internationally, instead of the coal industry, which the world is turning away from,” Foster Vander Elst said.
Contact - Monique Vandeleur 0419 588 430 or Simon Black 0418 219 086