Parliament returned to Canberra last week to be greeted by the Reckless Renewables Rally on the front lawn; a protest against net zero policies, wind turbines, the United Nations, COVID vaccinations, China and chemtrails, amongst other things.
All the usual political suspects were in attendance, led by the Member for New England and erstwhile deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce. He was joined on the podium by fellow fossil fans Pauline Hanson, Matt Canavan, David Gillespie, Keith Pitt, Craig Kelly, Malcolm Roberts and current Nationals leader David Littleproud.
The audience included a strongly conspiracy-tinged contingent from Queensland and the Illawarra, many holding professionally printed signs saying things like ‘Not clean. Not green. Not zero’ and ‘Stop being reckless with our future. Moratorium now.’
Alice Springs Nationals Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price described farmers at the rally as the ‘custodians of our land’, before saying wind turbines ‘only produce energy slightly… when the wind blows. But the wind’s not blowing now and the sun’s not out now, is it?’ In fact, wind and solar generated 10 percent of global electricity in 2021, and this number is steadily growing.
Dodgy numbers
Barnaby Joyce, the man who presided over the worst fish kills in Australia’s history through corrupt mismanagement of the Murray-Darling, claimed at the rally to be concerned about the risks to wildlife from new wind and solar farms, before suggesting that renewable energy was ‘a massive multinational swindle underpinned by your taxpayer dollars.’
It’s since been pointed out that former bush accountant and bouncer Joyce has misrepresented data from both the Australian Energy Regulator and the Australian Energy Market Operator, with his claim of a $121 billion threat from renewables to the Australian economy. Energy experts explained that this figure actually represents economic activity associated with the growth of renewables, including many rural jobs, money that would be spent otherwise on propping up a failing fossil-fuel based energy system.
While renewable energy does require new transmission lines and batteries, the CSIRO’s latest GenCost report found that even when those costs are included, solar and wind remain the cheapest form of electricity, being much more economical than the status quo or nuclear options, especially if offshore wind is part of the mix.
Of course renewable energy is not without its problems, from supply chain to distribution to disposal, but the made-up facts flew thick and fast at the rally, including the repetition of mining magnate Gina Rinehart’s claim that a third of agricultural land in Australia was under threat from renewables.
Actually, if all the country’s coal fired plants were replaced by solar farms (not something which is being proposed), research from the Clean Energy Council shows that this would require 0.027% of agricultural land.
Likewise, claims that decommissioned windfarms will end up overwhelming landfill have been debunked by major windfarm operators such as Acciona, who say that around 90 per cent of a wind turbine’s mass is recyclable at end of life.
Gross hypocrisy
There was more hypocrisy on show in the person of MP Keith Pitt, who hates offshore wind turbines, saying they will hurt whales and birds. This is the same bloke who wanted a major offshore gas drilling operation between Sydney and Newcastle when he was the Minister for Resources. This was only stopped as a result of the one positive decision Scott Morrison made when he appointed himself Minister for Everything. The legality of that decision is now under review.
The tight connections between many of the speakers at the anti-renewables rally and the fossil fuel barons pulling their strings were not articulated to the crowd, and the location of the rally in the middle of the ACT was also ironic. Thanks to the Greens and Labor in local government, the Capital Territory is a global leader in reducing emissions, having reached its target for 100 per cent renewable electricity back in 2020, and now pushing to transition away from gas too.
Adding to the incongruity, the Rally Against Renewables happened days before three of Australia’s biggest steel and iron ore producers (BlueScope, Rio Tinto and BHP) joined forces to announce practical steps to decarbonise the Australian steel industry as soon as possible. This step alone would have a major effect on national emissions.
Having failed to reverse the carbon policy direction of the Australian government, Barnaby Joyce’s big week ended with him being filmed lying drunk on a Canberra footpath, legs in the air, swearing incoherently on the phone at someone who later turned out to be his current wife.
For most people this would have meant demotion at the very least, and more likely the end of a political career, but in this case it was largely dismissed as just Barnaby being Barnaby. On Sky News, Peter Dutton chastised onlookers for not coming to Joyce’s aid.
And so the Trumpification of Australian politics continues.
Originally from Canberra, David Lowe is an award-winning film-maker, writer and photographer with particular interests in the environment and politics. He’s known for his campaigning work with Cloudcatcher Media.
Long ago, he did work experience in Parliament House with Mungo MacCallum.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
