In response to the South Australian Labor Party's commitment to create an SA Gas and Water Trust if re-elected, the Australian Conservation Foundation's national climate policy adviser Annika Reynolds (they/them) said:
"The proposed SA Gas and Water Trust risks funnelling millions of taxpayer dollars to climate-polluting gas corporations, with Santos set to be a major beneficiary.
"State capture by the gas industry is apparent in what looks like a Santos subsidy.
"As many South Australians do it tough and small businesses all along the coast continue to be hammered by the algal bloom, which is driven by global warming, it beggars belief that SA Labor is proposing to throw more public funds at the gas companies contributing to these problems.
"The subsidies embedded in the SA Gas and Water Trust proposal, from paying for pipelines to vague commitments to support the development of new gas extraction, are uncosted, leaving South Australian voters in the dark and on the hook.
"It is deeply disappointing that the SA Labor party continues to wind back its support for clean energy manufacturing and a domestic green metals sector.
"Steelworks powered by fossil gas are not green and undermine SA's long-term competitiveness in emerging international green metals markets.
"Instead of locking Whyalla to polluting gas, the state government should invest in a genuine and green pathway for the long-term economic prosperity of Whyalla."
