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Australian government confirms gas industry funding

Jomar Teves Aug 22, 2023

2 min read

The climate crisis has been a major issue being discussed over the past decade. Various world governments have taken steps to contribute to the movement by adopting renewable sources of energy. But there are still governments that still try to go back to using fossil fuels.

Recently the Australian government has been on fire due to the confirmation that it is still funding the gas-based industry. This led to events in Canberra this week pointing to a significant political battleground for the next federal election.

Protest against the government

In the capital alone, more than 80 doctors have joined hands to take a stand against the Australian government‘s support for fossil fuel in the northern territory. Despite the numbers being quite small, it may represent a larger movement that is backed by influential crossbenchers, which may include people such as David Pocock and Monique Ryan.

Also, approximately 2,300 medical professionals have supported a call to the Albanese government to take back funding worth $1.5 billion for industrial development. The labour party that came to power last year planned to sever the support for the Coalition’s never-delivered “Gas-Led Recovery”, which was raised during the pandemic. Despite such efforts, cash flow for fossil fuel development still goes on.

The Government is at odds

The Labour Party still struggles to release a coherent statement concerning gas in the Northern Territory. Anthony Albanese reported to the parliament that its main purpose is to develop clean energy and resources. Based on released documents, ABC further reports that the Northern Territory Labour government is an aggressive supporter of the gas industry’s expansion and described Middle Arm in its original pitch to Infrastructure Australia as the “new demand gas centre”.

After the Labour Party took power, Environmental Department officials emphasised Middle Arm’s vital role in developing Beetaloo. They stressed that Middle Arm significantly enables gas transportation in the northern region, aiming to boost the Northern Territory Economy.

In conclusion, the evidence based on the documents gathered shows that the new development of large-scale use of fossil fuels conflicts with the government’s effort to deal with the climate crisis. The International Energy Agency further elaborates that in more than two standard years, with global warming by 2050, there should be no new oil and gas fields. This further raises concerns about whether governments are truly dedicated to solving the growing climate crisis or whether the policies and steps are simply efforts to appease environmental groups and the population concerned about our environment.

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Jomar Teves

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After four years in business school and working for multinational clients, Jomar believes he can improve the world through his writings via Public Spectrum, by informing the public on the latest news and updates happening around the government and society. Jomar has eight years experience as a writer and has a degree in Business Administration and Entrepreneurial Marketing.