Media releases
If you have a media enquiry, please call or email Kathryn Lewis on (03) 8341 3110 or [email protected]
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Ahead of COP26, five young Australians lodge human rights complaint with UN over government inaction on climate crisis
Ahead of COP26, five brave young Australians from youth, First Nations and disability communities facing acute harm from climate change, have lodged a trio of human rights complaints with...
Victorian government must use powerful legal tools, strengthen laws to stop biodiversity emergency
The Victorian government must prioritise investment and make better use of powerful legal tools to stop the biodiversity emergency, environmental lawyers say, following the release of a scathing report into...
AGL’s Bayswater Power Station breached licence more than 50 times in two months
AGL’s Bayswater Power Station, in the NSW Hunter Valley, has exceeded air pollution limits more than 50 times in two months and is among three power stations in the state which failed to comply with air and water...
‘Once in a decade opportunity’ to halt southern Victoria’s water crisis
An alliance of community and environment groups have called for the Victorian government’s latest water strategy for the Central and Gippsland regions to lead to a major uplift in ambition and action to halt the crises facing our rivers and wetlands. ...
Federal government push to invest public funds in fossil fuel technology wide open to court challenge, leading Australian barrister says
A leading barrister and former head of the Law Council of Australia says the Federal Government’s push to invest public money into fossil fuels and non-renewable technologies could...
NSW coal-ash inquiry response another kick in the guts for community, environment
The NSW government’s lacklustre response to recommendations from an inquiry into coal-ash remediation has failed to reassure communities it will act to tackle the issues which pose a risk to the health of residents and the environment. Environmental Justice...
WHO clean air guidelines a call for action to protect health
Australia’s current air pollution standards are significantly weaker than the WHO guidelines, resulting in poor air quality contributing to the avoidable loss of thousands of lives each year, increased deaths from coronary heart disease and a range of respiratory...
Traditional Owners could achieve water justice in the Murray-Darling Basin for the first time, if government delivers on cultural flows
‘Cultural flows’ – water entitlements and rights for First Nations communities – could be achieved for the first time in the Murray-Darling Basin if government delivers on a First Nations led proposal. Following the completion of the federally-funded National...
Waste not, want not – communities call for NSW Government to deliver on coal-ash pollution, ahead of govt response to coal-ash Inquiry
Community groups who fear the New South Wales coal ash Inquiry will be a wasted opportunity if the government doesn’t act to implement its advice, want four key recommendations adopted they say will protect health and environment and create job opportunities for coal...
Community alliance warns Victoria could be left high and dry without drastic change to water management
An alliance of community and environment groups have made a public plea to the Victorian government to drastically change tack on water management across the state or risk leaving Victoria high and dry. The alliance...
Coalition of international legal groups brings Australia inaction on climate change before the UN Human Rights Council
A coalition of international legal organisations has brought Australia’s inaction on climate change before the United Nations Human Rights Council, claiming they risk violating the rights of people in Australia and around the globe if they...
Young Queenslanders escalate legal request to revoke Adani mine approval, after UN recommends Reef ‘in danger’ listing
Two young North Queenslanders have escalated a legal complaint made last year, calling for Adani’s Carmichael coal mine approvals to be revoked, in light of the United Nation’s recommendation to list the Great Barrier Reef as ‘in danger’ because of the risks of...
Federal Court orders VicForests to pay costs in Possums Case, reiterating multiple breaches of Victorian environment law
Today, the Full Federal Court ordered VicForests to pay the costs of Friends of Leadbeater’s Possum in the case to protect threatened native possums from logging. The costs decision in the Possums Case was made in light of findings that the state logging agency...
Landmark Federal Court win in Possums Case overturned on basis that logging remains exempt from federal environment laws
Today, the full bench of the Federal Court overturned the landmark win in the Possums Case on one ground, on the basis that logging has a wide exemption from federal environment law even when conducted in habitat critical to the survival of wildlife facing a high risk...
Fate of Australia’s native forests hinged on Federal Court appeal next week
A historic victory for Australia’s native forests and threatened species is being challenged in the Federal Court next week, with an appeal outcome set to change the fate of logging in Australia. In a win of national significance, the Federal Court last year...
National Pollutant Inventory: 5-year audit shows little change to coal-fired power station pollution, while 4000 people die prematurely from exposure
A five-year audit of Australia’s most comprehensive pollution data highlights inaction on toxic air pollution from coal-fired power stations, despite an estimated 4000 premature deaths from exposure. Lawyers from Environmental Justice...
Concerns escalate over rehabilitation of AGL’s Loy Yang power station after demerger announced
Concerns have escalated over the rehabilitation of AGL’s Loy Yang power station after the company announced a demerger that carves off coal-fired power stations into a separate corporate entity called PrimeCo. Bronya Lipski, Lawyer at Environmental Justice said:...
Legal experts welcome rejection of Crib Point gas terminal but urge federal decision to follow suit
Lawyers at Environmental Justice Australia (EJA), representing Environment Victoria, Victorian National Parks Association and Save Westernport, are celebrating an environmental win with the Victorian government’s rejection of AGL’s plan for a floating storage and...