On January 8th 2015, Japan Tropical Forest Action Network (JATAN) and Australia’s Front Line Action on Coal (FLAC) (which opposed the destruction of koala habitat in the Leard State Forest in New South Wales, Australia) gathered in front of the Tokyo offices of 3 companies: Idemitsu Kosan and Itochu Corporation to urge them to end their coal mining, and Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC) to divest from Idemitsu Kosan’s coal mine project.
Although Australia exports 2/3rds of Japan’s coal, the Japanese public is largely unaware of what is actually happening at Australian mines. There are many coal projects in Australia’s state forests like Whitehaven’s Maules Creek mine and Idemitsu Kosan’s Boggabri Coal project being simultaneously endorsed. Meanwhile, concerns about these projects have been growing: destruction of endangered koala habitat, conflict with Australian aborigines over land ownership, deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions caused by burning coal, impact on the local community, groundwater depletion, and more. Unfortunately, some of these issues are already becoming reality.
Local farmers, aborigines, the general public, and NGOs have been cooperating by patiently taking peaceful actions to stop these coal projects and save threatened koala habitat in the Leard Forest.
In addition to business operators and financing organizations, as Japanese citizens we should be more aware of the consequences of consuming coal.
Related Articles：
・[January 8th, 2015] Japan Tropical Forest Action Network (JATAN) and Australia’s Front Line Action on Coal (FLAC) oppose mine destroying koala habitat in NSW, Australia (JATAN press release, January 6th, 2015)
・Saving the Koala, from Maules Creek to Japan（Flont Line Action Network）
・BLACK HOLE – Feature Documentary Trailer
Documentary film
・Healing the scars of mining (Australian Broadcasting Corporation, July 23rd, 2014)
Documentary film