Press release – 21 September, 2017September 22, 2017: Another climate change denier will leave the public debate with the announcement of the resignation next month by Brendan Pearson from his position as Chief Executive of the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA).Pearson’s nine years at the MCA has been characterised by a constant undermining of the health and well-being of all Australians and the destruction of environmental treasures such as the Great Barrier Reef.
“As the Great Barrier Reef bleached and much of its coral died, the MCA under Pearson funded climate denialism and boasted about fighting against meaningful action that would protect all Australians from the harm of dangerous global warming,” Greenpeace Climate and Energy Campaigner, Nikola Casule, said.
“The MCA’s legacy is clear: a dying Reef, thousands of Australians suffering from preventable illness, the return of black lung to coal mining communities in Queensland, and an uncertain future facing catastrophic climate change.”
Casule said that the departure of the controversial CEO presented an opportunity for the MCA to step back from climate denial and chart a new course.
“The MCA have themselves claimed to be instrumental in the demise of the carbon and mining taxes contrary to the wellbeing of the Australian people and continue to spend millions advocating the creation of new coal-fired power generation,” Casule said.
“We hope the new CEO will help the MCA turn their back on their climate change denialism and take a more serious approach to their responsibilities and the beliefs of their members, many of whom have made public commitments to combating climate change.”
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