Coal in Australia
[1] About 70% of coal mined in Australia is exported, mostly to eastern Asia,[2] and of the balance most is used in electricity generation.
[4] Coal mining in Australia has been criticized,[5][6] due to carbon dioxide emissions during combustion.
This criticism is primarily directed at thermal coal, for its connection to coal-fired power stations as a major source of carbon dioxide emissions, and the link to climate change in Australia and worldwide.
[14] Australian coal was first discovered in New South Wales by shipwreck survivors in August 1797, at Coalcliff, north of Wollongong.
[25] In Western Australia, the first coal deposits were discovered in 1846 at Irwin River in what is known as the Coalseam Conservation Park.
[26] By the 1900s coal had become integral to the economy as it was used in locomotives on railways and in steam mills cutting logs, and grinding wheat.
After WWII, Australia began exporting coking coal to Japan to aid in their production of steel.
The primary destinations for its coal exports are Asian countries, notably Japan, Korea, India, and Taiwan.
Currently, the main importers of Australia's metallurgical coal include India, Japan, the European Union, and Korea.
[31] The Port of Newcastle, New South Wales, is the world's largest and most efficient coal handling operation through its two terminals: Carrington and Kooragang.
[41] As at June 2023, coal companies in Australia were making windfall profits due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
[citation needed] This includes Olive Downs mine, to be operated by Pembroke Resources, near Coppabella, Queensland.
[51] BHP planned to sell the Mount Arthur mine in 2022, but failed to attract a viable offer and decided to continue operations there until financial year 2030.
[53] Banks such as Westpac have introduced restrictions on lending for new thermal coal mines, including a limit of 6,300 kilocalories per kilogram for new projects.
[54] By 2021, Australia' big four banks were committed to leaving thermal coal by 2030, pledging alignment with the Paris Climate Agreement.
[59][60] It is estimated that air pollution from coal-fired power stations in Australia is responsible for 785 premature deaths each year.
[62][63] On 27 November 2006 the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales judge Justice Nicola Pain made the decision to set aside the Director-General's acceptance of the Environmental Assessment for the Anvil Hill coal mine,[64] on the grounds that it did not include a comprehensive greenhouse gas assessment, even though the proposed mining of coal was for export.
[68] In November 2021, anti-coal protestors led by Blockade Australia disrupted activity at the world’s largest coal terminal, the Port of Newcastle, by abseilling from equipment and obstructing railway tracks.
[69][70] Coordinated action by Blockade Australia in June 2023 saw ports in Newcastle, Brisbane and Melbourne targeted.
[72] The Carmichael mine run by Adani Group, planned since 2012 and opened in 2021, drew national and international opposition, both from climate activists and traditional owners.
A 30-hour blockade consisting of kayaks, surfboards and pontoons across a shipping channel blocked coal exports from the port.
Coal mining requires a pollution control ('environment protection') licence under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (NSW) if it exceeds the following thresholds set out in Schedule 1 of the Act: if it is mining, processing or handling of coal (including tailings and chitter) at underground mines or open cut mines and (a) it has a capacity to produce more than 500 tonnes of coal per day, or (b) it has disturbed, is disturbing or will disturb a total surface area of more than 4 hectares of land by: (i) clearing or excavating, or (ii) constructing dams, ponds, drains, roads, railways or conveyors, or (iii) storing or depositing overburden or coal (including tailings and chitter).
[82] In March 2020, the Queensland Resources Council introduced safety protocols to promote the health of coal mine workers amidst the international spread of COVID-19.
