On Tuesday 11 February community members from the South Coast loaded wheelbarrows with bits of burnt homes and forests and created the ‘Trail of Destruction’ from outside Parliament House to the Minerals Council of Australia calling for an end to Coal Lobby influence.
Jack Egan lost his home at North Rosedale in the recent South Coast fires.
Jack said, “we have all the solutions and public support we need to become a renewable energy super-power, but the coal lobby is holding us back, blocking action on climate change at every opportunity.”
“These fires are the trail of destruction that results when vested interests have too much power.”
“Our message to politicians and companies is simple: cut all ties with the fossil fuel lobby or we will continue to suffer the consequences of the climate crisis.”
"We delivered an invoice to the coal lobby group’s office for $1.3 billion - the most recent estimate of bushfire damages from insurers.
"Joined by Pacific Islanders and those on the frontlines of the climate crisis, we launched a new campaign to get companies and politicians to cut all ties to the lobby groups.
"The #CutAllTies campaign is supported by grassroots climate organisation 350.org Australia.
“The devastation the world is seeing unfolding in Australia is heartbreaking, and similar to what the Pacific has experienced for a while now. The increased frequency and intensity of natural disasters have become so common, that we seem to live in a state in-between recovery and preparation mode,” said Jacynta Fa'amau, spokesperson for the Pacific Climate Warriors.
.
“Australians and the rest of the world have been astonished by Scott Morrison’s refusal to take action on the climate crisis even as our communities and ecosystems burn. But his utter failure of leadership makes sense when you consider that Scott Morrison’s Chief of Staff and special advisor have both come to him from the Minerals Council of Australia,” said CEO of 350.org Lucy Manne.
The group has launched a website cutallties.350.org.au that provides information on the Minerals Council of Australia’s history of undermining climate action, the companies paying millions in membership fees to support their lobbying and advertising campaigns, and the people behind the revolving door between the coal lobby and Parliament House.
