“Adequately funding rehabilitation efforts will immediately create new jobs in the same communities where coal workers are losing jobs,” Greens resources spokeswoman Larissa Waters said.
However, mining groups argue that is the Greens very tax levy policy that is going to result in miners losing their jobs.
“It illustrates once again why the Greens occupy the radical fringe of politics and offer no sensible policy prescriptions for mainstream Australia,” Minerals Council of Australia executive director – coal Greg Evans said.
“The Greens would know there already exists strict requirements for former mine sites to be rehabilitated with security deposits provided by coal producers.
“Further, funds are not returned until regulators are satisfied all environmental conditions are met.
“Taxpayers are not exposed – in fact in the past financial year coal royalties contributed $3 billion in the eastern states of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria and are expected to contribute $15 billion over the next four years.”
New South Wales Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee said the Green’s proposed coal tax would cost jobs in NSW, particularly in the Hunter Valley and the Illawarra where thousands relied on coal for their livelihoods.
“Typically this new tax proposal from the Greens is based on anti-mining fairytales and not facts,” he said.
A key part of the Greens’ argument come from a report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis that says the coal export sector is in decline.
NSW coal exports to Korea are up 9%, exports to Taiwan have risen by 10% and across the rest of Asia outside of Japan and China, exports have more than double to 19.75 million tonnes over the past year.
There has also been strong growth in demand from India with NSW coal exports to India rising by 100% over the past financial year.
“The Greens have tried to talk the coal industry out of existence,” Galilee said.
“That hasn’t worked so now they’re trying to tax the industry out of existence.
“They should produce some constructive suggestions instead of lazy new tax proposals that target working people, mining families and communities across regional NSW.”
