Press release – 23 June, 2016Sydney, 24 June 2016 – Greenpeace climbers have scaled streetlights in front of Malcolm Turnbull’s electorate office and hung a banner warning the prime minister his legacy will be the devastating bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef.Climbing streetlights 15m above the ground at Mr Turnbull’s Edgecliff office in Sydney, two activists unfurled the banner which reads: “Turnbull’s Legacy: bleaching – brought to you by Malcolm’s mates in the coal industry.”
"Malcolm Turnbull’s government has sat by while the Great Barrier Reef has suffered the worst bleaching in its history and 22% of its coral has died,” said Greenpeace Australia Pacific reef campaigner Shani Tager.
“With one week left in this election, the clock is running out on Turnbull. If he wants to change this legacy, his government needs to stop backing the coal industry.
“The best way to protect the reef from the impacts of climate change is to put a stop to the mining and burning of coal and ensure it is kept in the ground.
“The prime minister’s response to the crisis on the reef has been all spin, focused on political point scoring instead of delivering the policies that the reef needs, policies that tackle climate change and put the breaks on the coal industry.
“The Great Barrier Reef is one of the world’s greatest wonders. It’s home to thousands of species and loved by all Australians. The Turnbull government has failed to protect the reef and it has failed to respond to the biggest crisis the reef has ever faced.
“Along with tens of thousands of other Australians, we’re not willing to see the same inaction from whoever forms a government after the next election,” said Tager.
Earlier this week, a guerrilla advertising campaign by Greenpeace led to advertisements at bus stops in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane being hijacked with stark white spoof adverts, stating that coral bleaching was “brought to you by the coal industry.”
Clean graffiti – using pressure washers and stencils – also appeared on streets throughout Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane with the same message. (Photos available in Dropbox folder).
On Sunday (June 26) the ‘Climate Fizza’ rally will take place in Steyne Park in the prime minister’s Wentworth electorate, where Turnbull’s local constituents will gather to urge him to do more to protect the reef.
ENDS