Hunter Power Project (Kurri Kurri Power Station)

8 June 2021

To whom it may concern;
I am writing to oppose the proposed Hunter Power Project (Kurri Kurri Power Station).
I am a mother of two small children from north-west Tasmania who has become motivated to step up and demand action and leadership around global warming, for the future of my children and the prosperity of our country and planet.
I work in Natural Resource Management and have a lot of exposure to the impacts of our changing climate on our natural world and the science which is predicting ever worsening consequences to inaction on climate change.
Investing in new fossil-fuel based energy infrastructure is contrary to the scientific advice on climate change and incompatible with a safe and habitable future. The International Energy Agency released a report in May 2021 Net Zero by 2050, A Roadmap for the Global Energy Sector which made clear that the route to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 was “narrow and extremely challenging” and that no new fossil fuel projects should be approved.
This project is incompatible with NSW Government’s legal and moral obligations and its ability to meet its own targets of net zero by 2050; 35% reduction in emissions by 2030 (vs 2005 levels). The Kurri Kurri Power Station will emit 500,000 tCO2e per year, equivalent to all expected gains from NSW’s $4.7m food and garden waste recycling program or the carbon sequestration potential of 8.3 million trees.
We cannot continue to ignore the scientific advice around climate change. This project exposes everyday Australians and future generations to too many unnecessary risks. Its approval would continue us on a dangerous trajectory of complacency and inaction on this most important issue, our rapidly warming planet and the future of life as we know it on this planet.
Please oppose this proposal for the sake of my young children and for the beautiful and vital natural resources that we all rely on for our survival.
Regards,
Hannah Sadler

No investments should be made in any new gas or oil projects in order to meet the climate change goals of the Paris Agreement as per findings from the latest International Energy Agency report.

I object to any further development of the Kurri Kurri Gas plant for the following reasons:
It’s completely unnecessary. The plant will be running off diesel for the first 6 months. It’s a waste of tax payers money and will push up electricity prices AND EMISSIONS. We need the 600 million to support green technology which is where future economic growth lies.

My submission shows that the project is a poor use of taxpayer's funds, and is unlikely to even get its money back.

I object to this project.

We are at the cross roads. I do not want to see my tax dollars contributing further to the intergenerational debt (environmental damage) that fossil fuel related industries will leave to our children. Please invest in clean technologies & the long term jobs that this new industry could create.

I strongly oppose the development of a gas-fired power station at Kurri Kurri. Living in Brisbane, I have no direct personal connection to the Hunter region. However as a parent of a 1-year-old child, I am concerned about this development and its impact upon climate change and emission reduction targets. My child and his generation are relying upon the government of today to achieve these targets and a $600 million investment in fossil fuel technology is not consistent with meeting these goals.

NSW has committed to the internationally recognised climate change target of net zero emissions by 2050 and has a legal and moral obligation to protect young people from foreseeable future climate change harms (Sharma and others v Minister for Environment, [2021]).

We must continue to transform our energy system towards clean and efficient renewable energy technologies. Continuing to invest in fossil fuels is putting the next generation’s survival at risk.

I object to any further development of the Kurri Kurri Gas Plant for these important reasons!
Its completely unnecessary. The plant will be running off diesel at least 6 months. It’s a waste of tax payers money and will further push up electricity prices AND more importantly emissions! Put the money towards green energy to promote economic growth, jobs and the planet’s survival.

I am a veterinary scientist and am very concerned about our changing climate and it’s impacts on the future of Australia’s plants, animals and people. I object to this project for three reasons: it will exacerbate climate change; it is not necessary to maintain a stable electricity supply; and it doesn’t make economic sense.

Science has shown that extreme weather events are greatly exacerbated by climate change and that we can expect more, and worse, to come. As a parent I feel distressed by the threats an unstable climate imposes on my daughter’s future. Australia is extremely vulnerable to the future impacts of climate change and I feel a responsibility to her generation to speak out against new fossil fuel projects, like this one.

The proposed Kurri Kurri gas plant is not necessary to meet our needs for a stable electricity grid. The Australian Energy Market Operator has said that only 150MW would be needed following the Liddell plant’s closure. Renewables and battery storage are capable of meeting this need. This plant is not needed by the Hunter Valley communities either; these communities need long term manufacturing jobs, not the handful of permanent jobs this plant would offer them.

The International Energy Agency recently urged the world to abandon plans for new coal power, gas and oil investments, and predicted big drops in gas demand. Not only does this project fly in the face of our commitments to meet our climate targets, it is irresponsible to spend public money on what would very quickly become a stranded asset. The world is moving rapidly towards a low-carbon economy and Australian businesses face future penalties from international trading partners because of our nation’s high carbon emissions.

It is for these reasons that I object to the Kurri Kurri gas project.

Thank you for the opportunity to make a submission.

Yours sincerely

Dr Bronwyn Walker BVSc MANZCVSc

Both international and national energy analysts have reported that there is little, if any, economic basis for developing new gas powered electricity generation. The use of taxpayers money to fund it would be fiscally irresponsible. Cleaner energy options are available, cheaper and offer better long term career prospects for workers than gas.
There are strong reasons to reject gas in order to mitigate climate change and meet globally responsible targets for emissions reduction.

Please find submission attached.

i live in the Hunter valley region and i don't want any more pollution in the air. also gas used to make energy is unnecessary -renewable energy can do what gas does and more. we just need the government to do its job properly and stop wasting money on fossil fuels.

The construction site is unnecessarily positioned to damage native vegetation and a swamp/wetland that native wildlife would use. There is a large amount of space available to position the structure so that no vegetation and swamp area needs to be touched. Th structure just needs to be move a number of meters back from the vegetation and swamp area. I submit that the developer be instructed to move the construction away from the vegetation and swamp area.
Thank You
Dan Vickers

Climate denialism has morphed into climate inactivism and this project is an example. The Hunter Power Project rides roughshod over good advice and good analysis. It should be refused. Submission attached.

I am a retired engineer living in the Hunter Valley, very interested in environmental impacts of power generation and its effect on Climate Change.
I object to this project with reasons as follows:
1.It's unnecessary: With clean, dispatchable power on the way, including big batteries and green hydrogen, the Australian Energy Market Regulator has clearly said that we do not need new gas generation to meet power demand. There is already a gas power station an hours drive away which has hardly been called upon.
2. A new gas project is expensive and will not reduce power prices in NSW
3. To avoid worsening the impacts of Climate Change,there can be no new fossil fuel infrastructure built anywhere on the planet including gas infrastructure
4. Gas is one of biggest drivers of Climate Change and must be left in the ground. The environmental impact of fracking has huge unnecessary environmental impact.
5. Existing gas power stations are unreliable and can break down in heat wave conditions
6. This project after huge expenditure, will provide only 10 local jobs.
Financial analysts, Ernst and Young, have produced a report on investment in energy production which clearly shows that investment in Renewables will provide around 3 times more employment than the same amount invested in fossil fuels with far less environmental impact.
For the above reasons, this project should be rejected.

I strongly object to the Kerri Kerri Power Station, both on my own behalf and on behalf of my grandchildren whose future is likely to be damaged if this goes ahead. This project has no merit and is deleterious to the Australian transition to renewable energy.
The International Energy Agency has stated that there must be no new fossil fuel projects if the world is to avoid failing the Paris Agreement targets. The Australian government is bound to support the Paris Agreement and this project would be in breach of that agreement, in principle if not in the technical details.
Agencies like the NEMO have denied the need for a new gas power plant in the national grid.
Firmed renewables are already planned and under way in the Hunter and will obviate the need for any more dispatchable power there.
The land acquisitions for the project are tainted because the man who calls himself a ‘walking ATM for liberal politicians’ owns the company which is selling the land to the Snowy Mountains Corporation. How can it not be seen as a deal to repay a major donor to the Liberal Party, rather than a serious attempt to fix an energy problem?

Dear Panelists,
I thank the panel for this opportunity to express my objection to the Hunter Power Project (a.k.a. the Kurri Kurri Power Station).
Please see attached for my full submission.

The recent report by the International Energy Agency concluded that the world should not be investing in any new gas or oil projects if we are serious about meeting the climate change goals of the Paris Agreement. Gas is polluting and expensive, as opposed to battery-backed renewable energy, which is cheaper, cleaner and doesn't contribute to climate change. It appears that the Federal Government is incapable of providing leadership towards a renewable energy future but the NSW Government has the opportunity to fill this vacuum. Not giving this project the go-ahead would be a very important first step. We really don't have the luxury of time to make any more catastrophic mistakes.

See attached.

Total waste of money and a danger to the environment.
The money should be used for renewables, a safer and healthier option, and which will create more jobs.