This year we have had a huge increase in our Creative Confrontation Unit’s capacity. Thanks to your support, we hired three new full-time staff members from other Greenpeace offices around the globe including a former Greenpeace captain! All three have plenty of experience in taking creative actions. Between our Whales Not Woodside and Electrify campaigns, we have put a great deal of effort into holding specific corporations accountable for their responsibility to the environment. 

Holding Woodside to account in Western Australia

We organised a silent protest at Woodside’s AGM in April, inviting local school strikers to learn the ins-and-outs of banner painting (a more complex task than you’d imagine!), and in partnership with local groups in WA, organised a Paddle Out event at Fremantle Beach to rally the community to turn the tide on Woodside! Once we were at sea with the Rainbow Warrior, we also exposed Woodside for leaving toxic oil towers to rot in the ocean, which they have since said they will clean up.

Electrifying our engagement

As part of our Electrify campaign, we have been putting pressure on Australia’s biggest retailers to commit to switching their fleet to 100% electric cars and trucks, powered by wind and solar. Tactics for this so far have included delivering thousands of petition signatures to the head offices of the major supermarkets, and a national week of action flyering and surveying customers at retail stores. The Electrify policy team also held a lobby day at Parliament where volunteers met their local MPs to call for caps on pollution from new cars. The tactics were made possible thanks to our wonderful volunteers from across the country who generously donated their time to challenge Bunnings, Coles, Woolworths and Aldi and lobby for political action.

Keen to get involved in Non-Violent Direct Action with Greenpeace?

One of the great things about NVDA is that it is inclusive. There is a place for everyone at a Greenpeace action, and we’ll always make sure that you are never put too far out of your comfort zone. For example, there will be people needing to be driven somewhere, banners to be painted, and sandwiches to be made. Greenpeace also covers the expenses, fines, and legal fees for our activists!

If you, or someone you know is interested, head to our Volunteers sign up form! We’d love to see our Green Guardians taking part if you are able. 

And as always, thanks to your legacy gift, we will be doing activism in your memory for a long time to come.

From Re-energise to Electrify!

This year marked the end to our Re-energise campaign, which was a huge success. We smashed all our goals in influencing corporations and governments to switch to renewable energy.

Since the inception of Re-energise, 21 major Australian companies have accelerated their shift towards going 100% renewable by 2025. Bunnings, Woolworths, Coles, Kmart, and ALDI are some of the trusted brands taking steps towards operating on renewable energy. Queensland recently announced a large investment in renewable energy, and other Australian states are upping their game in the renewables race.

We also independently ranked Australia’s best (and worst) energy providers and created a new online resource to help you switch to cleaner electricity; The Green Electricity Guide.

Now that we’ve Re-energised, it’s time to Electrify! One of the biggest industries holding Australia back is the transport industry, and this issue will be the first step of the Electrify campaign.

Transport is the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Australia. This is why we need to transition to cleaner cars and zero-emissions vehicles. Additionally, Australia has no fuel efficiency standards. This makes it more economical for large companies like Toyota to send their most polluting vehicles to Australia.

Fuel efficiency standards typically improve over time, forcing corporations to adopt better practices, or face financial penalties. In the UK and EU markets, petrol cars are expected to be phased out between 2030 and 2035 thanks to fuel efficiency standards. But Australia is lagging far behind.

In September this year, Greenpeace launched ‘The Toyota Files’. An online platform highlighting the car manufacturer’s role in blocking Australia’s transition to electric vehicles. In August, a Sydney Morning Herald article exposed Toyota’s ‘secret plan’ to block better fuel efficiency standards through their influence in the Australian Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Vehicle manufacturing companies can have a massive impact on reducing Australia’s emissions. But cars are just the first step. Long term, we want to see more investment in bikes, e-bikes, rail, trams, and buses to give people accessible and affordable transport options that are good for the environment. To do this, we will be putting pressure on both the government, and corporations like Toyota.

While we want to convince big corporations to make the switch to renewable energy and electric vehicles, we don’t accept donations from any of them. This is why your generous support is so fundamental to sustaining campaigns like Electrify, which in turn help sustain us all.

Optus is the 38th largest electricity user in Australia, using 539GWh of electricity a year – the equivalent of more than 85,000 homes, or nearly all the homes in Hobart. It’s announced that under a new climate action plan, 100% of its electricity requirements will be backed by renewable energy sources by 2025. 

Greenpeace’s research reveals that telecommunications and data centres are some of Australia’s biggest electricity users, streaming through a vast 3,913 GWh of electricity annually – as much as 630,000 Australian homes combined. The sector has been one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions, creating nearly 3.1 million tonnes of climate pollution.

REenergise campaign director Lindsay Soutar from Greenpeace Australia Pacific said that today’s clean commitment by Optus should get the telecommunications sector back on the renewable energy track. 

“After years of pressure on the telco sector from Greenpeace and the community, we’re pleased that Optus has today said yes to renewable electricity. Now Optus is dialling in to clean power, all major Australian telcos will be powered by the wind and sun by 2025. The telco sector is now streaming to the front in Australia’s renewable race” she said.

“We’ve been working with Australia’s biggest energy-using companies, from supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths through to Bunnings and Kmart, to accelerate their shift to renewables and make firm commitments to make the switch within the next few years.”

“The appetite for renewable change amongst Australia’s top brands has been huge, with over 40 major companies now committed to power their business with renewable electricity by 2025. These companies together represent almost 12% of corporate and industrial energy use in Australia’s National Electricity Market. 

“At a time when both major political parties fall short on their climate policies, we are pleased to see Australian businesses step up. This sends a strong message that while Scott Morrison and the federal government may continue to drag their feet, Australian businesses and consumers want to see the country powered by cleaner, cheaper renewable energy,” she said.

Greenpeace Australia Pacific is calling on Optus and all major telco and tech companies to sign up to the global RE100 initiative. 

—ENDS—

READ GREENPEACE’S TELCO INDUSTRY BRIEFING PAPER

REenergise Campaign Director Lindsay Soutar, from Greenpeace Australia Pacific, welcomed today’s announcement, saying “Queenslanders will soon be buying their homewares, power tools and office supplies from shops powered by the wind and sun, with iconic brands Kmart, Bunnings, Target and Officeworks joining forces on a huge power purchase agreement.”

“Kmart, Bunnings, Target and Officeworks combined are Australia’s 33rd largest electricity user, using vast amounts of power every day. Making the switch to clean power in Queensland will make a big dent in Australia’s emissions and bring online enough clean, reliable renewable energy to power 23,000 homes, and create good, future-facing Queensland jobs.”

“Smart businesses know that wind and solar are cheap, reliable and ready to power even our largest companies.. For a company like Wesfarmers, one of Australia’s biggest and most profitable businesses, making the renewable switch is the obvious choice, and this power purchase is a significant step towards making it a reality.”

“This is a big win for the community. Greenpeace supporters have been pressuring Australia’s big retailers to shift to cleaner power, alongside a strong green push from shoppers. With Australian communities struggling with climate disasters, like the recent catastrophic floods in Queensland and Northern NSW, there’s increasing pressure on big companies to speed up the energy transition. Ending reliance on fossil fuels like coal and switching to renewable energy is critical for tackling climate change, and these companies are showing how it can be done.”

Once Kmart, Target, Officeworks and Bunnings have all met their national commitment to 100% renewable electricity, they will be using enough renewable electricity to power over 110,000 homes.

Greenpeace Australia Pacific is now calling on Kmart, Target, Bunnings and Officeworks to cut deals to meet their 100% renewable electricity commitments in other states by 2025, with the expectation that the companies will tackle their value-chain and transport emissions in the near future.

For more information please contact Head of Communications Fiona Ivits on 0487 003 872 or email fiona.ivits@greenpeace.org

Glenn Walker, Senior Coal Campaigner for Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said the Morrison Government and big polluting energy companies like AGL need to start urgent planning now for the early retirement of coal.

“The most authoritative forecasting of Australia’s National Electricity Market has coal-burning power stations closing almost three times faster than previously anticipated. The renewable energy revolution has arrived, with cheap solar and wind power pushing dirty coal and gas out of the energy system at ever increasing rates,” he said. 

“The big energy companies and the Morrison Government urgently need to get their heads out of the sand and face the reality that Australia’s dirty, polluting and increasingly unreliable coal-burning power stations need to close within the decade. There are huge opportunities for local power station communities to be at the forefront of the renewable energy revolution, but this can only be fully realised if planning starts now.

“AGL, Australia’s biggest climate polluter, can no longer pretend it can mine and burn coal out to 2048, as is currently planned. It’s downright stupid and only serves to financially damage the company and waste precious time for local communities to plan for change.

“Similarly, the Federal Government’s preference to play dumb climate politics hurts local power station communities and consumers most. Scott Morrison talks about Australia becoming a hydrogen superpower, but it’s now clear from AEMO’s modelling that this means we need to phase out coal by 2030. If his government wants to walk the talk on climate action and the hydrogen economy, it needs to get on board with a clear plan for early coal power station retirement.”

Households are demanding cleaner energy and faster action on climate change and businesses are responding by flocking to renewable energy, with major companies including Telstra, Woolworths, Coles and Bunnings now committed to 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2025. Heavy industry is also moving fast to decarbonise, with plans afoot to power Australia’s energy-intensive aluminium smelters with renewable energy by 2030.

Notes

[1] https://aemo.com.au/energy-systems/major-publications/integrated-system-plan-isp 

AEMO’s ISP is the most authoritative forecasting of Australia’s National Electricity Market, guiding both policy and investment decisions.

For more information or to arrange an interview please contact Martin Zavan on 0424 295 422 or email martin.zavan@greenpeace.org OR Maddison Bates-Willis on 0401 244 296 or email maddison.bates-willis@greenpeace.org

The report, by the Human Rights Law Centre, Greenpeace Australia Pacific, and the Environmental Defenders Office, reveals how the unregulated political influence of the fossil fuel industry – a murky web of connections between governments and industry – is driving political inaction on climate change and the repression of those calling for action. Forms of repression include:

• The introduction of harsh, and at times unconstitutional, anti-protest laws targeting climate defenders
• The enforcement of punitive bail laws and excessive penalties for minor protest related offences
• Stifling civil society by defunding climate education and threatening to deregister charities that engage in climate activism
• Targeting activists with litigation, and surveilling and infiltrating groups of climate defenders 

Anj Sharma, who secured a Federal Court ruling that the Minister for Environment has a duty to protect young people from the climate crisis, said: 

“When it comes to protecting the future of our planet, young people across the world are increasingly turning to activism to generate action, rather than relying on governments. We’re not doing this because we want to, but because we have to. This is an emergency. Instead of persecuting the messengers, it’s time for governments to not only listen to our message but act on it.”

In the face of governments’ inertia, climate activism has been vital in helping persuade big business to change their ways: Equinor, BP, Santos and Chevron have abandoned risky oil drilling plans in the Great Australian Bight, Australia’s four major banks have agreed to exit the thermal coal sector on or before 2035, and Australian corporations including Coca Cola Amatil, Bunnings Warehouse and Officeworks have committed to sourcing 100 per cent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025.

Global Warning calls for urgent and immediate reform to stop the attack on climate defenders, including by establishing a federal integrity commission, capping political donations, and strengthening legal protections for activists by introducing an Australian Charter of Human Rights.

Yusur Al-Azzawi, Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said:

“For those without money or political access, protest is a critical way to advocate on the issues they care about. Yet we are seeing an alarming trend in which climate defenders are increasingly being restricted, intimidated and attacked by governments and politicians wedded to fossil fuels. At a time when the stakes could not be higher, and dire warnings about the earth’s warming could not be clearer, this is nothing short of reprehensible. It’s time for Australian governments to take action on climate change instead of attacking those protesting their inaction.”

Katrina Bullock, General Counsel at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said:

“Studies show the vast majority of Australians want stronger government action on climate change, yet the Morrison Government has been widely criticised for its inaction. We’ve just seen this play out at COP26, where Australia’s progress blocking and weak emissions reduction targets came under intense international scrutiny. 

“We live in a democracy which was designed to give effect to the will of the people, yet the voices of the general population calling for climate action are being drowned out by the disproportionate influence of powerful fossil fuel players. This report documents the disturbing pattern of repression experienced by peaceful climate activists in Australia as they attempt to be heard – from the laws introduced to criminalise peaceful protests to the excessive bail conditions, penalties and lawsuits endured by those who advocate for a greener, healthier future.”

Julia Grix, EDO Managing Lawyer, said:

“In our work representing climate activists we are seeing a concerning national trend towards an inappropriate use of police powers against peaceful protesters. What we are seeing is police placing onerous bail conditions on climate activists, including strict curfews and movement restrictions, despite these conditions being repeatedly overturned in the courts.

“In one instance two environmental activists with no criminal record spent more than 24 hours in police custody after refusing to sign bail conditions which would have imposed a curfew and severely limited their movement. These conditions were later thrown out in court.

“Most concerning is that this abuse of police powers is not limited to a particular jurisdiction. Around the country we are seeing an inappropriate and at times aggressive use of police powers against peaceful environmental protesters.”

For more information contact Maddison Bates-Wills on 0401 244 296

Greenpeace Australia Pacific’s Lindsay Soutar, who leads a campaign working Australian businesses on their transition to 100% renewable electricity, said AEMO’s sunny outlook should spur businesses to move faster on their energy transition.

“Australia’s biggest businesses are already moving quickly on the energy transition, and today’s report from the operators of Australia’s energy grid should instill confidence in any still sitting on the fence – it’s time to seize the opportunity and make the switch to cleaner, cheaper renewable electricity,” she said.

“With investors and customers increasingly demanding strong climate performance, and with coal power in terminal decline, smart Australian businesses like Woolworths, Telstra, Coles and Bunnings have already planned ahead to make the switch to 100% renewable electricity by 2025. ALDI has already reached its 100% renewable electricity target.”

“Switching to 100% renewable electricity is the most effective way for a company to reduce emissions and has huge business benefits including a cheaper, cleaner electricity supply.  It’s time for corporate laggards like Optus to make the switch – or risk being left behind.

Tom Daunt, CEO of ALDI Australia, said that his company, one of the country’s biggest supermarket chains, was already seeing the benefits of switching to 100% renewable electricity.

“When we stood back and assessed our environmental footprint as a whole, we determined it made sense to first focus our efforts on the areas we could have the biggest impact. We found 85 per cent of our carbon emissions were derived from the electricity we used to power our operations. To mitigate this we prioritised investments in wind and solar and now our entire business, including all our stores and warehouses, are now fully powered with 100% renewable electricity,” he said.

For more information or to arrange an interview contact Fiona Ivits on 0487 003 872 or fiona.ivits@greenpeace.org

After posting a $2.7 billion loss, the pressure was on the operator of some of the country’s dirtiest coal burning power stations to clean up its act or face even bigger losses in the coming years.

As well as the epic financial losses, the review was driven by a pressing need for AGL to get with the times. The old economic model that underpinned coal-fired power generation is under enormous pressure from asurge of large-scale renewable energy and storage projects already powering Australia and exerting downward pressure on energy prices, with many more to come online in the near-term, coupled with world-leading rates of households adopting rooftop solar. 

 Rather than moving to get onboard the renewables roadtrain, AGL has chosen to deal with the pressure by announcing plans to split into two businesses.

A ‘retail’ business, which will house AGL’s token renewable energy assets and try to push the community friendly image that AGL likes to cultivate.

And a separate company to hold AGL’s coal assets including some of the nation’s top climate polluters, Bayswater and Liddell in New South Wales’s Hunter Valley, and Loy Yang A, in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley. 

Bayswater is a coal fired thermal power station owned by AGL Energy near Muswellbrook in New South Wales, Australia. It was opened in 1985 and is due to shut down by the end of 2035. AGL Energy is Australia’s single largest climate polluter. This image document the water pollution and ecosystem impacts from the leaching coal-ash waste dumps.

AGL has once again let down its investors, shareholders and the growing number of Australians who want to see coal replaced with clean energy like wind and solar.

AGL wants to keep these ageing, unreliable and climate-wrecking coal-burning power stations out of the public eye but will continue to rely on them to generate the bulk of its power for decades to come, in the case of Loy Yang A, until 2048!

AGL plans are completely at odds with its hollow marketing rhetoric and the globally accepted timeline for coal closure that we need to maintain a safe climate.

By hiding its polluting coal assets away in a separate business, AGL is attempting to pull the wool over the eyes of its millions of customers. It’s masquerading as a forward-facing, modern energy business while holding on to its ageing, unreliable coal power stations.

AGL has already been left behind and this dodgy demerger will only entrench its backward position on climate and energy. Its main rival Energy Australia, which has been slow but seems almost like a Formula One race car compared to the glacial pace of AGL, has brought forward the closure of its Yallourn coal burning power station in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley to 2028. Yallourn will be replaced by the world’s largest battery.

Energy Australia Man ging Director Catherine Tanna said the new battery “will help to secure Victoria’s energy supply and enable more renewables to enter the system”.

The very same renewables that make AGL’s decision to run its Loy Yang A power station until 2048 completely untenable on economic and environmental grounds.

Given where the coal market is headed, AGL’s CEO Brett Redman is dreaming if he thinks Loy Yang A can stay open that long. This timeline is also completely inconsistent with nation-wide efforts to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

AGL is clearly a company in trouble and it’s gone into damage control. But rather than doing anything of substance, AGL has chosen to treat the inevitable decline of coal and it’s terrible environmental impact as a marketing problem rather than an opportunity.

Customers of all businesses want them to take meaningful action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Other businesses are listening and responding by announcing shifts to 100 per cent renewable electricity. This year we’ve seen Coles, Coca-Cola Amatil and TPG Telecom make the renewable switch, following brands such as Woolworths, Bunnings, Officeworks, Telstra and ALDI last year.

These are all big, complex companies that use lots of energy but that hasn’t stopped them from making concrete plans to reduce emissions.

Energy providers, like AGL, should be doing the same, rather than relying on complex corporate manoeuvres to try and hide their destructive operations and continue polluting.

If AGL was serious about the future of the planet, and the long term future of its business, it could power Australia with renewable energy – and it would create thousands of jobs and thriving industries, particularly in regional Australia. 

There are clear economic benefits for AGL to make the switch to clean energy, pumped hydro and battery storage could be attached to the sites of its existing power stations, where they can easily hook up to high voltage transmission lines.

With renewable energy already powering the country, and growing every day, it’s time for AGL to come clean and make the switch – or fall even further behind.

REenergise Campaign Director Lindsay Soutar from Greenpeace Australia Pacific said that Mars was leading the field in the Australian corporate renewable energy race.

“M&Ms have just become the chocolate that melts in your mouth but won’t melt the planet, as Mars becomes one of Australia’s first major companies to flick the switch to 100% renewable electricity.”

“The Mars power purchase deal with Kiamal Solar Farm has seen the company become one of the first major food and drink companies in Australia to be entirely powered by the sun. By making a major investment in solar power, Mars is driving down greenhouse gas emissions, and, to sweeten the deal, they’re helping to create clean energy jobs and investment for Western Victoria.”

“We don’t need to sugar-coat it – what’s not to love about renewable powered chocolate?”

Mars was one of the first of a growing number of Australian brand giants, including Woolworths, ALDI and Bunnings to make the commitment to 100% renewable electricity by 2025. In total, Australian companies have committed to enough clean energy to power 1.3 million homes – more than all the homes in Brisbane and Perth combined.

In sourcing its electricity needs from the 256MW, 714,000 solar panel Kiamal solar farm, Mars is supporting the generation of significant jobs in North Western Victoria. The solar farm provided employment opportunities to more than 300 people across an 18-month period during construction and over 10 full-time employees during the operational phase.  

Andrew Bray, National Director for Re-Alliance, Australia’s leading renewable energy advocacy group, said that Mars’ commitment benefited the local and wider Australian economy.

“Solar power generation is becoming an important new industry in the Mallee. When companies like Mars buy the power from these plants, it draws jobs and financial benefits back out to regional Australia,” he said.

While Mars Australia’s 100% renewable electricity switch is a significant step forward for the company, Greenpeace Australia Pacific urges Mars to address the significant and ongoing problems with the company’s operations, particularly around palm oil and deforestation.

“Switching to 100% renewable electricity in Australia is a big, practical step for Mars Australia to reduce its climate impact, but globally Mars has a lot of work to do, including ending forest destruction in Indonesia in pursuit of palm oil and addressing emissions in its global supply chain. Being a good corporate citizen doesn’t end with renewables.”

For more information please contact Fiona Ivits on 0432 368 714 or fiona.ivits@greenpeace.org