Tuesday, 4 March 2025

 Sarah MANSFIELD (Western Victoria) (13:45): Last week I stood shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of Geelong residents who said a clear and unequivocal no to Viva’s proposed floating gas terminal in Corio Bay. Right now the decision to approve or reject this dangerous proposal sits with the Victorian Minister for Planning, and the strong show of community opposition sent a clear message to Victorian Labor that fossil fuels should not and cannot be part of Victoria’s future. Experts speaking at the event shared concerns, including about Corio Bay’s 30-kilometre shipping channel being unfit for LNG tankers and needing extra dredging, which would affect over a thousand species of marine life in a site that has more diversity in fish species than any other in Port Phillip Bay, and about air quality worsening for local residents, just to name a few. Geelong’s future is clean, green and renewable. We must prioritise the health of our ecosystems, community and climate and end our reliance on filthy, polluting, climate change inducing gas. Sunday’s event made me feel hopeful for our future and inspired by and proud of the Geelong community and their passion for protecting people and the planet, but it is now on Victorian Labor to do justice to their passion and their call for a cleaner future.