PERTH, Monday 9 March 2026 — In response to reports that the West Australian government is preparing to build new gas-fired power stations in WA, the following lines can be attributed to Geoff Bice, WA Lead at Greenpeace Australia Pacific:
“Adding new gas-fired power stations is a bizarre and backwards suggestion – there is no need for more fossil fuels in the WA energy system. WA desperately needs to reduce its emissions, so it makes no sense to undermine the good work of shutting down one fossil fuel source just to open up another. Recent modelling by Greenpeace clearly demonstrates that WA does not need more gas, and entrenching it is a risk to our economic development as a renewable energy powerhouse.
“Adding new gas is simply too risky for WA. Becoming more gas reliant only exposes WA households and businesses to the price volatility we are currently seeing in global oil and gas markets due to the war in the Middle East. Given the global backlog in production of gas-fired generators, access to a new facility could be years away, well after coal has already exited the system.
“New gas is not the solution for WA when we have such an abundance of infinite, cheap renewable energy and an ambitious battery investment plan. Gas is a costly and risky option for WA taxpayers that would lock in pollution for decades to come.
“The Minister must keep her courage in the face of gas industry lobbying. The build-out of batteries and renewable energy has been gathering pace, and WA cannot afford to take a backward step at this crucial stage.”
-ENDS-
Tribes navigating the U.S. lithium boom have little power to influence decisions on homelands seized from them. Governments in other countries have begun to build systems that offer stronger legal protections.
In the U.S., many Native American tribes maintain deep cultural and historical ties to ancestral lands outside of reservation boundaries. A 19th-century mining law still governs much of today’s lithium boom—and it doesn’t require the federal government to consult tribes before mining projects advance on these ancestral lands.
What the US Could Learn About Mining on Indigenous Peoples’ Ancestral Lands
More than 100 projects to mine for the metal powering the green-energy transition have been proposed in the U.S. alone.
There’s a global rush for new sources of lithium to power the green-energy transition, including a major push for mining the critical metal in the U.S. Columbia Journalism Investigations and Inside Climate News teamed up to track this development trend. Here’s how we collected and analyzed data on new lithium projects—and examined which communities may be most affected by them.
Go behind the scenes with senior editor Michael Kodas, ICN reporter Wyatt Myskow and Columbia Journalism Investigations reporter Johanna Hansel as they discuss the complicated push to build up lithium mining in the United States.
Today, just one lithium mine operates in the U.S. By 2030, at least six new projects are expected on American soil, with 13 more close behind, mostly in the dry Southwest.
-
Climate Change9 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
-
Greenhouse Gases9 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
-
Greenhouse Gases2 years ago嘉宾来稿：满足中国增长的用电需求 光伏加储能“比新建煤电更实惠”
-
Climate Change2 years ago
Bill Discounting Climate Change in Florida’s Energy Policy Awaits DeSantis’ Approval
-
Climate Change2 years ago嘉宾来稿：满足中国增长的用电需求 光伏加储能“比新建煤电更实惠”
-
Renewable Energy7 months agoSending Progressive Philanthropist George Soros to Prison?
-
Carbon Footprint2 years agoUS SEC’s Climate Disclosure Rules Spur Renewed Interest in Carbon Credits
-
Greenhouse Gases10 months ago
嘉宾来稿：探究火山喷发如何影响气候预测