In July 2023, EJA made a submission on the Environment Protection (Sea Dumping) Amendment (Using New Technologies to Fight Climate Change) Bill 2023, outlining key issues with the Bill.

The proposed Bill would set up a system for companies to ship carbon emissions generated in Australia into another country’s waters to inject under the seabed, and vice versa: CO2 emissions created in other countries could be imported into Australia for injection under the Australian seabed.

Environmental Justice Australia is concerned that the proposal to import and export carbon emissions raises several serious climate justice and environmental issues which are not addressed in the Bill, including:

• Climate injustice
• Facilitating fossil fuel expansion
• Inadequate risk management
• Avoided responsibility for greenhouse gas pollution

Read EJA’s submission to the Department of Industry, Science and Resources, below.

For more background and a simple explainer of the Bill, its key issues, and what happens next, check out our blog on undersea carbon capture and storage (CCS).