Adani has launched a multi-pronged advertising campaign in an effort to pressure the Queensland government’s approval of the $2 billion Carmichael mine.
The campaign – which Adani has said it is willing to run until May’s federal election – calls for the Queensland government to give it a fair go and that it is ‘ready to start delivering jobs for Queensland’.
Digital billboards have been launched throughout Brisbane and regional Queensland, with ads for radio, television, newspaper and office towers to follow.
Adani mining CEO Lucas Dow expressed disappointment in the government’s hesitance, telling the Australian Financial Review: “We’re ready to go. We have the money, we have 14,500 people who want to work for us and we have the plan to start”.
A spokesman for the Palaszczuk government reinforced that their decision would not be swayed by the campaign, saying: “How Adani spend their money is a matter for them”.
Members of the Lock the Gate Alliance, established in 2010 in response to the expansion of coal mining, view this as a desperation move.
LTGA spokesperson Carmel Flint said of the campaign: “Adani must abide by the law like every other company does.
“So far, the company has not been able to successfully submit a satisfactory Groundwater Dependent Management Plan or a Black Throated Finch Management Plan – drafts of both have been ridiculed by experts.
“Adani is being investigated for drilling into groundwater at its mine site and prosecuted for the 2017 release of contaminated water into the Great Barrier Reef from their coal terminal – last week they had to admit they’ve released more polluted water from the port.
“Tired of being told to respect the law of the land, Adani is now trying to bully the Queensland Government into allowing its clearly flawed proposal.”
