As extreme heat grips much of the nation and bushfires continue to pose threats to life and land, Australian Conservation Foundation CEO Adam Bandt has made a direct plea to his former colleagues in Parliament House ahead of its formal return for the 2026 year.
"Coal and gas exports are destroying the great Australian summer," ACF CEO Adam Bandt said. "This Parliament must protect Australians and save our summer by stopping new coal and gas mines.
"I sat in that building for years watching politicians make solemn condolence speeches about fires and floods, then go and approve another coal or gas mine. Will 2026 be another year of cognitive dissonance from Canberra?
"The 2025-26 summer has been one of chaos. We've lost at least one life in the Victorian bushfire disaster and the cost to nature, wildlife and people's homes is insurmountable.
"Coal and gas sent offshore comes back as heatwaves, fires and floods. No matter where in the world Australian coal and gas is burnt, it fuels extreme heat, bushfires and floods here at home.
"As politicians sit in your air-conditioned offices next week, pay a thought to people who don't share that luxury or are forced to turn off the A/C, during heatwaves fuelled by coal and gas, because their power bills are too high.
"Pay a thought to people making the tough choice to leave behind livestock, their homes and memories, as out of control bushfires get too close for comfort, fuelled by coal and gas exports.
"Pay a thought to volunteer firefighters who are on the frontline of tackling bushfires, made worse by prolonged extreme heat, driven by the government's coal and gas approvals.
"Our community is reeling. One ACF supporter, Jim Billings, who lost his home in the Longwood bushfire in Central Victoria, sums up the hurt - it kills me, he said, it kills me because it's gone. It's irretrievably, completely and utterly destroyed.
"I'm in the rare position of not returning to parliament this year and instead campaigning alongside everyday Australians who want and need climate action.
"We will see the government in court this year over its approval of the NW Shelf climate bomb. But we call for Parliament to act first by stopping new coal and gas exports."
