(Tim winton, ‘The Guardian’, 22nd Feb 2025)<\/p>\n
Having acknowledged our extinction crisis and the climate emergency, Anthony Albanese promised to introduce more effective nature laws. His government hasn\u2019t delivered on that promise. A policy failure this monumental isn\u2019t just politically embarrassing \u2013 in the real world of blood and fur and feathers, it\u2019s calamitous. Because without positive action, precious things and places will die. That\u2019s not tragic \u2013 it\u2019s shameful.<\/p>\n
Sad to say, part of that shame can be sheeted home to my home state of Western Australia. The\u00a0last-minute intervention of our premier, Roger Cook, ensured the extinction of those new nature laws.<\/p>\n
WA, of course, is the only Australian state without a 2030 emissions target \u2013 here, carbon pollution is\u00a0increasing<\/em>. So, no surprise that\u00a0temperatures are already dangerous,\u00a0fires\u00a0and\u00a0floods\u00a0are intensifying, and homes and properties are becoming\u00a0uninsurable.<\/p>\n Polling shows that most Western Australians want climate addressed properly as a matter of urgency. But the Cook government\u2019s fealty to the fossil fuel industry, backed by local press barons, is almost tribal. Despite the science, they want to back the likes of Woodside\u00a0to drill and pollute for another 50 years.\u00a0That\u2019s a death warrant for Australia\u2019s corals.<\/p>\n After this week, our shock will turn to sorrow. But while we must own that grief, we should be sure to identify its sources and use that knowledge to bring about change. Elections aren\u2019t our only opportunity to disrupt and destroy business at usual, but they\u2019re a good place to begin.<\/p>\n Read Tim Winton’s full report here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"