Panel Series – From placards to plaintiffs | The rise of environmental activism and ‘lawfare’

Environmental activism and ‘lawfare’ in Australia has become a well-funded and resourced machine that has set its sights on disrupting and delaying the development of natural gas projects. From protesters, placards and billboards to public disobedience and attacks on the private residences of executives, those opposed to the industry are adopting increasingly extreme tactics to stop or frustrate projects. And their actions aren’t limited to the streets. Well-funded activist law firms are exploiting the courts and outdated and uncertain environmental laws to hold Australia’s energy security to ransom. The recent Federal Court case brought against the Santos Barossa Project – where the judge found that the evidence put forward by the Environmental Defenders Office was ‘so lacking in integrity that no weight can be placed’ on it – exposed the tactics used by some organisations. This panel will discuss how these dynamics are influencing policy, investment, public opinion and how they could impact future natural gas projects in Australia.