Friends of the Earth (FoE) welcome the Victorian Greens’ proposal to shut down Victoria’s remaining coal fired power stations by the end of the decade.
We commend the proposed legislation for ensuring a Just Transition for affected communities, as well as taking effective action on the climate crisis by committing to increasing Victoria’s Renewable Energy Target to 100% by 2030.
‘Without a funded plan for a full transition, the Latrobe Valley community is at the mercy of volatile market forces and the transnational owners of the power stations, which will abandon them when coal is no longer profitable,’ said FoE’s renewables spokesperson Wendy Farmer.
‘The Greens’ proposal for a fully funded transition and jobs guarantee would give communities the certainty needed to plan for the future. The Latrobe Valley Authority is well placed to lead and drive the transition.’
‘The plan’s requirement of coal stations to incorporate cleaner technologies for the remainder of their operating lives will be welcomed by communities in the Valley, whose health has long been harmed by the toxic air pollution from coal stations,’ said Ms Farmer.
FoE campaigns coordinator Cam Walker said ‘The current timeline for coal fired power station closure leaves polluting power stations open until 2046. The best-available climate science makes it abundantly clear this is too late to have a chance at staying below 1.5°C of warming.’
‘The deepest emissions cuts need to be made this decade to align with the climate science. We call on both major parties to scale up their ambition to cut emissions before 2030 in a way that provides certainty for communities.’
For further comment, please contact:
Wendy Farmer, Friends of the Earth renewables spokesperson: 0408 261 551
Cam Walker, Friends of the Earth campaign coordinator: 0419 338 047