Mining industry leaders should end their scaremongering campaign over the carbon pollution reduction scheme, a coalition of union, environment, welfare and research groups said outside the headquarters of the Australian Coal Association (ACA) today.

“The mining industry is running an hysterical scaremongering campaign when mining investments are at record levels,” said John Connor spokesperson for Southern Cross Climate Coalition* (SCCC) and WWF.

“Industry leaders have conjured non-existent threats to mining jobs and are shedding crocodile tears for workers in a cynical bid for extra taxpayer money,” he said.

“All the research, from Professor Garnaut to the industry’s own experts, acknowledges that Australian jobs and mining jobs will continue to grow even under significant emissions reduction commitments.

“The multi-million dollar advertising campaign being run by the ACA and Minerals Council should end so we can have a fact based discussion about a fast and fair transition to a clean energy economy where everyone is doing their bit.

“These industry groups and companies like Rio Tinto, Woodside, Xstrata, Peabody, Anglo-American and others are showing the worst dinosaur behaviour in this public debate, it is time they evolved and did their fair share.

“Minerals and the mining industry are important to the new technologies and industries needed in a clean energy economy. We will need transition policies in some areas but this is not an industry fretting about its future.”

Recent data and analysis includes:

• The Garnaut Review found under the scenario of a 25 percent emissions reduction by 2020, output in the mining sector is expected to grow - the coal sector by 37%.

• Reserve Bank deputy economist Phillip Lowe recently acknowledged mining investment at 5 per cent of GDP was at historically high levels, dwarfing past resource boom levels (19/10/09)

• Australian Bureau of Agriculture and Resource Economics lists 74 mining, energy and minerals processing projects worth $80 billion in advanced development

“It’s time to stop the billions in unconditional handouts to the big polluting dinosaurs and time to strengthen and pass, not further weaken, the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme,” concluded Mr Connor.

(* The Southern Cross Climate Coalition comprises the ACTU, the Australia Conservation Foundation, The Climate Institute, the Australian Council of Social Services)