Why is this campaign called Six Degrees?

We often get asked why we called this campaign Six Degrees. And while we've had an explanation on our website for a while, many people in urban Queensland are not aware of the full extent of the number of groups that make up the movement fighting fossil fuel expansion in all its horrific forms.

New action groups across Queensland are forming literally everyday. Here's a taste.

The Golden Triangle Community Group - Springsure

"We formed the group after an explosion of mining exploration in our area. We need confirmation on what areas will be classified as strategic cropping land as this will ensure a mining company has to prove it can rehabilitate the area to pre-mining status." - Secretary Jackie Wells.

Western Downs Allliance - Tara

"We want a moratorium on coal seam gas mining, a five kilometre exclusion zone should be placed around residental estates. We must protect the residents from this intrusive and toxic form of mining, noise and the dumping of untreated CSG water on our roads and in our dams, and the leaking gas wells." - Spokesperson Scott Collins.

Kingaroy Concerned Citizens Group - Kingaroy

"We are opposed to underground coal gasification. This industry is being trialled by Cougar Energy near Kingaroy, by Carbon Energy at Kogan Creek and Linc Energy at Chincilla. It is important to protest against this industry because it has been proven to contaminate water in many trials overseas and in the trial near Kingaroy. It should be shut down." - Spokesperson John Dalton.

Future Food Queensland - Statewide

"FFQ was formed to raise awareness in both rural and urban Queensland of the complete lack of planning and coordination of the expansion of the mining industry. We are not opposed to mining. However, FFQ has lobbied for a state-wide regional planning process to identify and protect the very small areas of prime cropping land in this state." - co-Chairman Geoff Hewitt

Residents Action Association - Bowen

"We are a group of local citizens, who are extremely concerned about the heavy industry future being actively promoted for Bowen and its immediate vicinity. We aim to engage the community in lobbying all levels of Government to seek an environmentally sustainable future for the region, and to advocate for the development of sustainable industry, including those using clean renewable energy sources, as a source of employment for the region." - Spokesperson Maria Macdonald.

Wandoan Clean Food Alliance - Wandoan

"We are concerned that mining and gas exploration companies show little respect for landholders and their position as custodians of food producing land and cause damage to agricultural land without any monitoring by regulatory authorities such as DERM. We believe an external audit system should be part of the mining lease conditions for the Wandoan Coal Project." - co-Co-ordinator John Erbacher

Jimbour Action Group - Jimbour

"Jimbour township and the surrounding area is part of the exploration permit currently held by New Hope Coal. The area is an alluvial floodplain and consists of highly productive and highly valued soils. Uncertainty coming from the increasing number of newly announced projects has left the community unsure about its future. Our main goal is to have a clear line of communication with these companies and the community with the explicit desire of leaving the prime agricultural land undamaged." - Spokesperson John Alexander. 

Save our Darling Downs - Cecil Plains

"We are concerned about the potential devastating effects of a coal seam gas industry on the intensively farmed land with particular note to the Condamine alluvial aquifer, the high clay content soils in the region and the competition for land between agricultural and methane mining. We would like to see the Premier Anna Bligh call an immediate moratorium on further development of the CSG industry so independent scientific investigations can be made." - Spokesperson Ruth Armstrong.

Haystack Roal Coal Committee - Haystack Plains

"The group was formed to fight Tarong Energy's claim over our prime farming land on Haystack Road, and more recently Arrow Energy's Surat Gas Project. It is important that prime farming land such as Haystack is protected from their open cut coal mining proposal. We would like to see the archaic State Mining Act (1989) given an overhaul, because their is no protection of premium food producing land." - Committee Treasurer, Nevin Olm.

Aldershot And District Against the Mine - Aldershot

"We are a community action group of concerned residents who formed after receiving the horrifying news that Northern Energy Corporation (NEC) was intending to mine 500 thousand ton of hard coking coal per annum over a period of 10 years just over 2kms from our doorsteps. We are not against all mining. We are simply against open cut coal mining, or any other form of mining, that has a negative impact on rivers, valuable farming land, environmentally sensitive areas, residential areas & peoples health." - President Steve Harding. 

Friends of Felton - Felton Valley

"We are a communtiy organisation established in response to the proposal by Ambre Energy to build an open-cut coal mine, petrochemical plant, and power station in the beautiful Felton Valley, 30km south-west of Toowoomba. They say they will produce three million tonnes a year of CO2 and they will just let it go up into the air. It would be a significant national source of pollution. A project like this would be bad for the environment wherever it was built, but to build it in a prime agricultural area like this is unthinkable." - President Rob McCreath.

Save Bimblebox Nature Refuge - Alpha

"Bimblebox Nature Refuge, 50 km north-west of Alpha, was bought in 2001 with support from the Federal Government for inclusion in the National Reserve System. This Nature Refuge has already been extensively drilled in preparation for a massive coal project. From start to finish, Waratah Coal’s proposed development will wreck havoc on the environment and jeopardise the potential of developing sustainable industries that will out-endure the flash-in-the-pan quarry economy. The proposed mine will be one of several in the Great Artesian Basin recharge zone. It could destroy the 8000 hectare Bimblebox Nature Refuge, which is part of the National Reserve System but for which there is no protection from mining." - Spokesperson Paola Cassoni

Facing coal or gas expansion in your region? Do you need some support or resourcing to help build your local campaign? Check out our resources page, or get in contact with Six Degrees directly. 

Based on an original article in Queensland Country Life, 5th August 2010, p17.