Andrews government calls for new brown coal projects, including in the Latrobe Valley

Victoria is "open for business" for new brown coal projects with the state government calling for initiatives that create jobs, including in the Latrobe Valley.

Victorian government says its new brown coal
policy would focus on using coal reserves in
a "low emissions setting". 

The Victorian government said its new brown coal policy would focus on using coal reserves in a "low emissions setting”.

Resources Minister Wade Noonan said new proposals for alternative uses for coal would be examined.

"We want to create new jobs with a forward-thinking approach to climate change and a commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050," he said.

Green groups slammed the policy, saying new coal projects could add to Victoria's pollution levels.

Read the story by Benjamin Preiss in today’s Melbourne Age - “Andrews government calls for new brown coal projects, including in the Latrobe Valley.”

(The idea that Victoria is “open for business” contradicts the good sense approach to combatting climate change as the concept appeals to the energy-rich 20th Century understanding of what business is. First the State Government needs to explain in detail what “open for business” means in an era when we must change our behaviour, breaking our consumptive habits to lead a more restrained life. If we are to do any business at all, it must be about helping us build more resilient and stronger communities that are better placed to do better with less. So, “open for business” must mean we have reached an understanding that Victoria is now committed to and placing itself to play its part in helping the world avoid catastrophic climate change - Robert McLean.)