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“Australia’s biggest climate changer has taken Greenpeace to court | Climate Change News

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Canberra, Australia – Greenpeace Australia Pacific goes to court against Australia’s largest power producer AGL Energy Ltd in court on Wednesday, after AGL criticized the charity for using personal laws and symbols.

Greenpeace Australia Pacific used AGL logos in advertising campaigns launched in early May 2021. The campaign was designed to promote a new report from Greenpeace Australia Pacific aimed at making people aware that AGL is Australia’s “most climate changer”.

The campaign features the AGL logo along with Greenpeace. The AGL legal team will sue in court for violating the rules and regulations copied in Australia.

Greenpeace Australia Pacific says its ads are traditional, and that no one would be fooled into thinking that its weapons are AGL’s advertising.

“Based on the type of AGL in our advertising work, we want to show public interest that, while AGL provides a forward-looking, resilient show to the public, it is the cause of climate change more than any other company in the world,” Greenpeace Australia Pacific Senior Campaigner .

“Despite being the largest coal-fired power plant in Australia, AGL has a good reputation as an energy regulator.

“The AGL signal is false, and the target is under pressure.”

“Most Dirty” in Australia

AGL manufactures and supplies electricity to several countries in Australia.

It supplies about one-third of Australian households and has the capacity to generate more than 11,000 megawatts, representing approximately 20% of the Australian Global Market.

But it relies heavily on coal-fired power plants to produce such energy.

General Counsel Katrina Bullock and Senior Campaigner Glenn Walker and Chief Executive David Ritter (center) [Courtesy of James Zobel/Greenpeace]

About 85% of the company’s energy comes from coal, according to a survey. Only 10% came from renewable energy by 2020.

Despite this, AGL, which is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX), pretends to be an environmental management company. Its advertising tools boast that it is “behind the scenes” and is “the largest ASX list in the powerhouse”.

The Greenpeace Australia Pacific campaign highlights this in particular. The group says AGL is “Australia’s biggest contributor to climate change”, which will generate more than 42 million tons of greenhouse gases in 2019-2020.

His comments are in line with what the Australian Energy Agency is doing[1]. The agency’s National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting figures show that AGL’s emissions represent more than 8 percent of Australia’s total emissions, more than double the number that will be released in Australia in the future.

Katrina Bullock, a senior lawyer at Greenpeace Australia Pacific, said it was clear that the AGL was not denying the allegations.

“AGL does not deny the headline that it is the most disgusting thing in Australia,” Bullock told Al Jazeera.

AGL states that using their logo in [Greenpeace Australia Pacific] the campaign was a misuse of my name, ”he said.

“In Australia, violation of trademark laws is a violation of the law only if you use a trademark. These are natural activities that do not sell commercially or professionally. ”

In addition, lawyers claim that there is a “fair deal” of privacy in Australia to allow for humor and ridicule. This means that self-protected advertising materials, such as logos, can be used to respond publicly.

Bullock described the case as “a precautionary measure used to prevent protest and repression”.

‘SLAPP suit’

“This is a case against public participation (SLAPP),” said Rebecca Gilsenan, attorney general at Maurice Blackburn, a licensing company at Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

“Legally, you have to ask yourself: is AGL involved in the use of their brand?” Gilsenan asked.

“Or is it because Greenpeace is calling them to destruction?”

Staff at Liddell Power Station at AGL in Muswellbrook, New South Wales, Australia. The company plans to close the plant by 2022 but has extended its life until April 2023, according to its website. [File: Dan Himbrechts/EPA]

The SLAPP suit is a lawsuit aimed at intimidating opponents into examining themselves as a result of financial security. The main goal is for the critical person or organization to abandon their threats.

“SLAPP cases are known in some countries but are not known in Australia,” Gilsenan explained. “The SLAPP outfit affects the campaign and anyone who wants to criticize [AGL’s] actions. ”

AGL disputes this, claiming that the lawsuit is merely a violation of the “illegal use of AGL rules”.

“AGL has no intention of banning public talks,” an AGL spokesman said in response to Al Jazeera. “However, we have the right to defend our nation under Australian law.”

AGL originally merged with Greenpeace Australia Pacific on the same day of the launch of the campaign, sending a letter of resignation and resignation. The lawsuit was filed recently, with AGL calling for a decree against Greenpeace Australia Pacific to stop using the AGL name.

The case was heard a few days later, but the court rejected the appeal and ordered that the property be confiscated.

Subsequent events take into account the results of the June 2 hearing.

SLAPP suits need in Australia

The last SLAPP lawsuit in Australia took place in 2005. The Gunns Forest Company sued 20 people and organizations in court for damaging their business by damaging and destroying workers.

The Gunns said their opponents caused the company to lose their jobs and profits. The protesters, the then Greens’ Australian leader Bob Brown, said they were only protecting the environment.

The Gunns finally dropped their claims against several protesters five years later and the Victorian Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. Everything else was answered.

In 2007, Brown stated: “Freedom of speech, as well as forest health, have been hampered by this.” [for breaching environmental law], and those who want to follow the laws of our country in court. ”

Former Greens’ leader Bob Brown (left), a former civil rights activist, was nominated for a SLAPP suit that the Gunns, a forestry company, made in 2005. He left this five years later. [File: Erik Anderson/EPA]

Only Australia Capital Territory has regulations that offend SLAPP suits.

A very powerful example

The outcome of the AGL vs Greenpeace Australia Pacific case could have significant implications for public opposition in Australia.

“Winning the case would be a good example of how the courts work,” said Bullock of Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

“The case could set a precedent for what might be considered a good deal,” he explained. “This would allow people to bathe and sit in the yard without fear of prosecution.”

Some environmental and climate organizations are monitoring the situation. Thirteen groups, including the Australian Conservation Foundation and Friends of the Earth Australia, signed a letter to AGL in late May, urging the company to drop the charges.

The letter said: “We see this as a violation of the right to freedom of expression and the ability of our institutions to hold accountable organizations in the event of an emergency.”

“We believe it is important that charitable, non-profit, humorous and community-based organizations have the right to challenge, create equity and secure their organizations by using their logo to threaten lawsuits.”



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