The documents show Adani refused to accept scientists’ concerns that the company’s water modelling was not appropriate.
Documents published by the ABC are a smoking gun that reveal the Prime Minister and Environment Minister misled Australians about Adani’s willingness to address significant scientific concerns about its plans to suck-up billions of litres of groundwater, the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) said.
ACF’s Stop Adani Campaigner, Christian Slattery, said the documents were evidence the Morrison Government had engaged in an extraordinary stitch-up to rush through Adani’s groundwater approval on the eve of an election, despite scientific and environmental concerns.
ACF’s analysis of federal and Queensland disclosure registers has found Adani donated $60,800 to the Liberal Party since the last election, and a further $30,000 to One Nation.
“The government and Adani have been caught red-handed selling out Australia’s environment and precious groundwater,” Mr Slattery said.
“Prime Minister Morrison and Minister Price misled the Australian people when they claimed they were working on the best science and Adani had ‘accepted in full’ the recommendations of CSIRO and Geoscience Australia.
“The documents show Adani refused to accept scientists’ concerns that the company’s water modelling was not appropriate and that new modelling could show the mine’s impacts would breach its environmental approvals.
“Instead of backing its independent scientists and protecting the interests of our communities and the environment, the government shoved through a key approval for one of its major donors.
“This is a breach of the trust Australians should be able to have in their elected representatives.
“It reveals enormous flaws in this government’s approval process for Adani’s coal mine. It brings into question all other approvals granted by this government for Adani.”
“Most Australians oppose Adani’s massive coal mine because the burning of its coal will accelerate dangerous climate change and the destruction of the Great Barrier Reef.”
