If you’re going to ‘pick winners’ from the energy market, you at least want to choose wisely. So it’s hard to see why Victorian laws treat coal and coal seam gas more favourably than renewable energy.
The Environment Defenders Office (Victoria) (EDO) released a report last week that finds Victoria’s laws give the mining industry privileged treatment that few other industries enjoy. In particular, they now make it easier to obtain approval for a coal mine than a wind farm in Victoria.
The planning rules for wind farms introduced by the state government last year are some of the toughest that apply to any type of development anywhere in the country. No new wind projects have been proposed in Victoria since they have been introduced.
At the same time, the government has moved to relax the laws that apply to new mining projects, developing a strategy to encourage brown coal export in Victoria, and initiating a Parliamentary Inquiry to identify and remove barriers to further ‘Greenfields’ minerals exploration and mining.
That Parliamentary Inquiry is due to table its report tomorrow. Let’s hope it considers the following differences between the treatment of coal mines and wind farms in Victoria:
Climate Spectator
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