International Day of Action Against Big Biomass
Today I attended a protest at Cement Australia in Railton, Lutruwita / Tasmania, as part of International Day of Action against Biomass energy, to highlight the urgency of halting native forest logging for fuel for the big biomass industry. In Tasmania, woodchips from native forests, and old tyres, will be used as fuel as a replacement for coal for ‘renewable energy’. In other words, native forests in Lutruwita / Tasmania will be torched and incinerated for energy.. propaganda for biomass is greenwashed messaging to the public, a global practice that is far from sustainable or ethical, in the current climate crisis amid critically endangered species habitat and loss of ecological biodiversity. Native Forests are Worth More Standing.
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BOB BROWN FOUNDATION MEDIA RELEASE:
A protest is underway at Cement Australia’s Railton plant as part of International Day of Action against Big Biomass. Bob Brown Foundation is calling on the company to halt plans to burn thousands of tonnes of wood sourced primarily from native forests at Cement Australia’s Railton plant.
The day of action is organised internationally by the Biomass Action Network, with the message “Bioenergy Destroys Biodiversity”.
BBF has been joined by the Coordinator of Campaigns for the Biomass Action Network Peg Putt, a former leader of the Tasmanian Greens.
Controversially, the Australian government has granted $53 million for the plan to burn wood and old tyres as a so-called ‘clean’ energy solution to substitute coal, yet burning wood emits equivalent or more emissions than coal and other genuine renewables and clean energy sources were not even considered for the project.
“Transition to burning forest biomass is an outrageously backward move that relies on continued logging destruction of our precious native forest ecosystems and their wildlife and the stupid thing is it doesn’t even reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It’s double trouble,” said Peg Putt.
“It beggars belief that the Albanese government have showered $53 million on this wacky plan without even considering genuine, renewable energy options in a rush to fund something that locks in broadscale logging of native forests for an ongoing wood supply to burn,” said Peg Putt.
“The world needs forests to survive the current and impending climate and biodiversity crises, incinerating habitat trees for fuel is an outrage and a false economy and it must not happen here at Railton,” said Erik Hayward, Bob Brown Foundation’s Campaigner.
“Cement Australia’s plan, funded by the Labor government proposes to chip and burn not only native forests, but burn tyres in the process to fuel their kilns, its archaic in a global climate emergency,” said Erik Hayward.
“If Cement Australia proceeds with this forest burning project at Railton, we will be ramping up our campaign and we put this company on notice, forests must not be used for this outrageous proposal,” said Erik Hayward.
“We’re standing up to protest the appalling impacts of biomass energy,” said Peg Putt.
“Tasmania can do without adopting this dirty, destructive energy that is causing environmental destruction and polluting communities around the world,” said Peg Putt.
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Photos by Karen Keefe.
#BigBadBiomass
