The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) has welcomed the Albanese Government's endorsement of the Blue NDC Challenge at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, but warned the government's climate credibility is at risk unless it urgently reins in offshore oil and gas approvals.
The new global initiative, led by Brazil and supported by the UN, calls on countries to place the ocean at the centre of their updated national climate plans ahead of COP30. It explicitly includes actions such as phasing out offshore oil and gas and scaling up clean ocean energy like offshore wind, wave and tidal power.
Australia's Minister for the Environment, Senator Murray Watt, signed the nation onto the voluntary challenge in France, describing it as an opportunity for global ocean leadership.
But just weeks ago, the same government granted approval to extend the life of the North West Shelf gas project - one of the country's largest fossil fuel facilities - effectively greenlighting further gas extraction and carbon pollution dumping CCS near Scott Reef, a globally significant coral ecosystem.
AMCS Fossil Fuels Campaign Manager, Louise Morris, said:
"Australia cannot have it both ways. We cannot sign up to climate action initiatives on the world stage while locking in more offshore gas at home.
"The government's support for the Blue NDC Challenge should signal the beginning of the end for offshore oil and gas expansion - not more business as usual. The world is watching, and the scientific evidence is clear, we cannot allow any more fossil fuel approvals if we are to keep to our Paris commitments."
The decision to extend the lifespan North West Shelf gas processing plant out to 2070 came just days after Woodside spilled 16,000 litres of oil into waters north of Ningaloo, and as mass coral bleaching - driven by fossil-fuelled climate change - was recorded on both sides of Australia.
"Australians are proud of our oceans and want them protected. Signing the Blue NDC sends an important signal - but unless it's backed by action, including a clear plan to phase out offshore oil and gas, it risks being just another PR commitment without teeth," Ms Morris said.
AMCS is calling on the Albanese Government to:
- Commit to no new offshore oil and gas approvals in Commonwealth waters;
- Commit to a moratorium on seismic blasting oceans for fossil fuel exploration;
- Begin a planned phase-out of offshore fossil fuel production in line with climate science;
- Prioritise investment in clean ocean energy and marine ecosystem restoration;
- Reflect the Blue NDC principles in Australia's updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) ahead of COP30.
