Australian community wins landmark ruling on coal export emissions

A community group in Australia’s Hunter Valley has won a High Court case that blocks a major coalmine expansion and strengthens scrutiny of emissions from coal burned overseas.

In a 3-2 decision, the country’s highest court dismissed MACH Energy’s appeal over the Mount Pleasant mine near Muswellbrook, New South Wales. The proposed expansion would roughly double annual coal production and extend the mine’s life to 2048.

A majority of judges found that the state’s Independent Planning Commission had failed to consider conditions to minimise the project’s greenhouse gas emissions, including those generated when exported coal is burned. These overseas emissions account for about 98% of the project’s projected total.

The residents’ group, whose president Wendy Wales is a retired science teacher, pursued the challenge through the courts for more than four years. After losing its initial case, it succeeded in the NSW Court of Appeal before defending that outcome in the High Court.

This was the first climate change case heard by Australia’s highest court. Lawyers for the group say the ruling establishes an obligation across the NSW planning system to consider ways to reduce overseas emissions.

The decision invalidates the expansion approval, rather than ordering the existing mine to close. MACH Energy said it accepted the ruling and would review its implications while pursuing options to continue operating.