In a move that has shocked environmentalists and raised alarm about Australia’s climate future, the Western Australian government has been quietly dismantling key environmental protections and greenlighting massive fossil fuel projects. The state, which has long operated in the shadow of the country’s east coast power centers, is betting that the rest of the nation won’t notice or care as it steers a reckless course on climate. But with state and federal elections looming, the high-stakes gamble may backfire as voters demand accountability.
Tearing Up the Rulebook
Over the past few months, the Labor government in Western Australia has launched an unprecedented assault on environmental regulations:
- The state’s Environment Minister abruptly announced that WA would no longer seek to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from major projects – overturning decades of policy consensus.
- Sweeping reforms were passed to overhaul the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), stacking it with industry representatives and allowing the government to dictate its priorities.
- A “consultant” who believes his job is to rubber-stamp projects “as quickly as possible” was appointed to chair the weakened EPA.
- Crucial climate legislation and emissions reduction targets have been abandoned or indefinitely delayed.
One retiring Labor MP described the changes as an “industry wish-list”, while environmental groups were frozen out of consultation. WA Premier Roger Cook bragged about personally pressuring the Prime Minister to back off federal oversight, flanked by mining and gas executives.
The Carbon Bomb
This regulatory bonfire is being fueled by one overriding objective: fast-tracking approval for the gargantuan Burrup Hub fossil fuel project. Run by gas giant Woodside, it’s slated to be the single biggest polluting development in Australia’s history:
- Plans are underway to expand drilling in the sensitive Burrup region until 2070 and beyond.
- Just one component, the Browse gas field, was deemed “unacceptable” by the EPA in August due to “serious” and extensive environmental risks.
- Experts warn that if the full Burrup Hub proceeds, it will produce a carbon pollution bomb on par with some of the world’s dirtiest coal plants.
“It is dangerous for the country and dangerous for the world, and it needs to be called out.”
Former WA Premier Carmen Lawrence
Rather than heeding these dire assessments, the WA government has systematically torn down any regulatory hurdles in Woodside’s path. With the EPA now firmly under the thumb of industry-friendly political appointees, approval of this climate-wrecking behemoth looks all but assured.
Voters to Have Their Say
According to former Premier Lawrence, WA Labor is gambling that local voters “won’t care” about this environmental vandalism and that the “rest of the country won’t notice.” But several upcoming elections will put this cynical political calculus to the test:
- Western Australia faces its own state election in 2025, with climate and the government’s fossil fuel agenda set to be key issues.
- The next federal election, due by 2025, will see Labor’s climate credentials and support for the Burrup project come under nationwide scrutiny.
- Recent polling shows the vast majority of Western Australians want stronger nature protection laws and urgent climate action.
Environmental advocates are already gearing up to make the government’s reckless record a focal point of both campaigns. They will argue that Labor has betrayed its duty of care to the environment and abandoned its own voters in service of powerful vested interests.
“Australia still hasn’t realised the damage that WA political and business leaders are doing.”
Former WA Premier Carmen Lawrence
For now, the WA government appears determined to drive Australia’s climate policy off a cliff, discarding environmental protections to pave the way for colossal fossil fuel expansion. In doing so, they are wagering their political futures that voters will forgive this brazen betrayal. With the very future of our planet in the balance, it’s a bet they may sorely regret.
