Gas Free Hunter Alliance

Head on over and follow the landholders fighting to stop the Hunter Gas Pipeline https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100095223082825&mibextid=LQQJ4d

Hunter Gas Landholder Rights Alliance Incorporated. NO Hunter GAS Pipeline Protect our safety, water, food security, primary producers, threatened & endangered species.

Newy locals..

Chris Bowen MP made the right decision to sack Paul Broad today, Snowy Hydro’s CEO. The Hunter Community was promised a power plant that runs on green hydrogen and that's what should now be delivered. We look forward to seeing Paul Broad replaced by someone who can deliver on this promise.

The Hunter is the energy hub of this country. We would be proud to boast one of the biggest hydrogen power plants in the world. But the Labor Government needs to tell us when and how they’ll make it happen – so local people aren’t left in the dark.

“Gas Free Hunter Alliance coordinator Alexa Stuart said the Hunter community demanded to know when the project would run on hydrogen.

“Energy Minister Chris Bowen promised during the election that the Labor Government would only support the Kurri Kurri plant if it ran on a green hydrogen-blended fuel from day one.

“What we’re seeing now is the government funding a polluting, gas-fired power plant without a clear plan to fulfil their election promise and convert it to clean hydrogen. We know significant numbers of local people don’t want this –about 3000 Hunter people signed our petition against it.

“Without a clear timeline from Labor, local people are rightfully concerned that we’ll be stuck with a billion dollar dinosaur that won’t provide long-term jobs to the community.”

It's a gas - Kurri green hydrogen vision still a way off The federal government has backed away from a promise that 30 per cent green hydrogen will be used...

The Labor government should stay true to their word, listen to the thousands of local people, and spend the $1.3billion on retraining locals to better prepare them for when power stations close

Today we travelled to Sydney to meet with Kylea Tink for North Sydney. It was a productive and positive meeting and it was great to see how passionate about stopping the Kurri Kurri gas plant she is!

Wondering what candidates in the hotly contended seat of (bordering the gas plant site) think of the project?

Let's be clear on where candidates in the electorate, home to the gas plant, stand on this obscene project. While there are some *very* questionable reasons, the majority are against it.

A damming article by energy expert Ted Woodly about new information showing that the gas plant is not "hydrogen ready" (as it was promised) and will cost over 1 billion dollars.

"How will the major parties respond to these latest revelations?

Will the Coalition persist regardless, to avoid a loss of face? Will Labor reverse its stance (again) as its expectations for hydrogen conversion have been dashed?"

Kurri Kurri gas folly: Cost blowout, limited operation, not hydrogen-ready The total cost of Kurri Kurri has blown out to more than $1 billion, it won’t have much storage, and it won’t use hydrogen.

There are three things you can do to help the campaign this week!

1. Make a submission on the Kurri Kurri lateral pipeline environmental impact statement (EIS) by the 10th May 2022
2. Share this social media post to help boost the message and generate more submissions
3. Come along to our online meeting next Wednesday (4th May) 5:30pm to learn more about how to write your submission (send us a message and we will send you the zoom link)

We are aiming to get 100 submissions on the EIS to let the department know we don't want the pipeline or the gas plant to be built. To help us achieve this we have put together a submission guide with all the info you need to do this which you can find on our website: https://www.hcec.org.au/gas-free-hunter-alliance

You can write your submission here: https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/projects/kurri-kurri-lateral-pipeline-project

A good news story! Further proof that the jobs vs the environment narrative is outdated and wrong.
Investment in renewable energy = investment in jobs.

Renewable energy precinct likely to attract $28 billion in private investment: report A Hunter Renewable Energy Industrial Precinct could attract $28 billion in private investment, support 34,000 new jobs and...

The Government's own energy advisory is saying that the future of gas is "uncertain," so why is $600 million of public funds being wasted on the Kurri Kurri gas plant??? Scott Morrison (ScoMo) and Angus Taylor MP need to stop ignoring the facts and start investing in industries whose futures are certain (hint: that's renewable energy!)

“Under AEMO’s scenarios, there is uncertainty about future demand for and supply of natural gas as the market identifies pathways to decarbonise and users look to alternative fuels, like hydrogen or electricity, for industrial processes, manufacturing, heating, and cooking,” said AEMO executive general manager system design, Merryn York.

Future role of gas in Australia’s grid is uncertain, AEMO says The AEMO outlook will fuel a contentious debate about investment in gas infrastructure.

Lots of emotions in response to this this. Disbelief that such an insane project could ever get off the ground. Devastation that the concerns of local people have been ignored. And anger that once again our government has put profits above people and continued to invest in projects that, despite claims otherwise, do not help the community, the energy market or the planet.

We have fought this gas plant since it's announcement and we will continue fighting.

Construction about to commence on Kurri gas peaker The Federal Government is pushing ahead with the construction of the $600 million Kurri gas peaking plant.

Great article deconstructing the Government and Labor's stance on the Kurri Kurri gas plant.

Claims of Kurri plant gains an 'insult' to Hunter Opinion | The commitment is pure greenwash

Angus Taylor MP you say "The government is supporting these projects because they stack up."

This is simply not true.

The Kurri Kurri gas plant does not stack up.

Experts, including the government's own energy market operator AEMO, say the gas plant is not needed. The private market will not fund the project because it is not economically viable. Locals don't want it.

So how can you say this project stacks up?

For those who also think this project doesn't stack up, let the Newcastle Herald know: https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/opinion/letters/send-a-letter-to-the-editor/

Power project stacks up for prices, reliability Opinion | Safeguarding energy system balance is crucial

Angus Taylor MP and Sussan Ley MP you say you have "heard the concerns" of locals, so why are you building this dirty, money-wasting gas plant that the community doesn't want?

As local resident Llynda said "It really is disgusting that he ignores the community like that."

CONSTRUCTION COMMENCES AT KURRI KURRI GAS PLANT | NBN News Hunter residents have unleashed their fury over the Kurri Kurri gas plant. The project's passed one of its final hurdles to construction, with protesters confronting politicians today.

On his visit to the proposed gas plant site today, in his hire car, pushed his way through the locals who showed up to tell him to support regional communities to transition away from fossil fuels and take real action on climate change!

The Hunter region needs secure, future-focused jobs. Investing $610 million or more of public funds into an unnecessary and outdated gas plant will create just 10 long-term jobs. Instead, we call on Mr Taylor to fund renewable energy and storage, and to retrain workers in fossil fuel reliant industries.

We still don’t want your polluting gas plant

Anthony Albanese and Chris Bowen MP why do you now support a gas plant that you have previously (and accurately) said "doesn't stack up" and described as a “cynical attempt to pick a fight on gas and continue the climate wars?"

If you say you are committed to acting on climate change and transitioning the Hunter to renewable energy, why would you spend millions subsidising a gas/diesel plant that that experts say is not needed and which will pump fossil fuels into the atmosphere, further fueling climate change?

Labor's plan to green the Kurri Kurri gas power plant makes no sense Labor wants to run the Kurri Kurri gas power station on green hydrogen. But the figures don’t stack up.

You can’t chuck $600mil at gas and claim you’ve done something good.

We don’t support public money being used to fund the station & even under Labor’s policy, that’s what this plant will do

Yesss Gas Free Hunter Alliance 👏🏽 👏🏽 love seeing the sign I drew for this campaign out and about ❤️ Gas is a stinky fossil fuel and we shouldn’t be building new gas plants if we want to address climate change - especially not at the expense of the taxpayer! It’s pretty shameful is allowing new gas and coal when we should be transitioning away from dirty energy.
Image Description: a community gathering outside a beautiful old pub with ornate lattice work on the balcony - the Kurri Kurri hotel - holding signs that say “Gas Free Hunter Alliance” and “Reject Kurri Gas Plant” and “No Kurri Kurri Gas Plant, clean jobs now!” with a picture of solar panels and wind turbines on it.

Bruce Robertson from the Institute of Energy, Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) on the Kurri Kurri gas plant crime.

https://www.michaelwest.com.au/kurri-kurri-gas-plant-climate-crime/

State versus State, gas mate versus gas mate, a fossil fuels bonanza with a planet on the line - Michael West Media Emissions targets are dead. Corrupt governments in hock to their fossil fuels corporate donors are accelerating fossil fuel projects

Did you know that the Kurri Kurri gas plant will be built on the habitat of the endangered regent honeyeaters? We need to be protecting the habitat of these beautiful birds not further destroying it. Will you join us in our fight against the Kurri Kurri gas plant to protect the regent honeyeaters?

"Sadly, our new research shows these birds are now heading for rapid extinction. Unless we urgently boost conservation efforts, the regent honeyeater will follow the passenger pigeon into oblivion within the next 20 years.

If we let the last few die, the regent honeyeater will be only the second bird extinction on the Australian mainland since European colonisation, following the paradise parrot."

Regent honeyeaters were once kings of flowering gums. Now they're on the edge of extinction. What happened? These iconic honeyeaters once ruled the flowering gum trees in massive numbers. But habitat loss means they’re on the edge of extinction.

We've edited the title of the Newcastle Herald's recent letter to the editor so it is more accurate: We DO NOT need the Kurri gas plant.🚫‼️⚠️

See image three for a great rebuttal to the article, thanks Ed!

"These minimal use units are more about justifying Gas fields over farmlands than securing power supplies."

http://disq.us/p/2lnfqge

What would you rather see $600 million dollars of tax payer money spent on?

And make sure you are following us on Twitter:

Well, 2021 has been a very busy year for the Gas Free Hunter Alliance, and as the year draws to a close we wanted to look back on a few highlights.

Since our launch in May, we have had more than 55 000 signatures on our petition against the Kurri Kurri Gas plant, and to make the opposition of Hunter residents even clearer, we put yard signs up all throughout the Hunter. We have protested at the offices of MP Rob Stokes and MP Matt Kean, and in August we had an epic zoom protest with over 150 people, where we called/emailed politicians to demand that the gas plant never gets built. Then, right at the end of the year, just a few days before Christmas, we heard the shocking news the Kurri Kurri gas plant has received state approval so we kicked up a media storm and held a snap protest to show that the fight is not over yet.

Thanks to everyone for your passion over the last year and we hope to see you in 2022 as we turn up the heat on our campaign!