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CALIFORNIA–(ENEWSPF)–January 13, 2014. Conservation groups are calling on the U.S. delegation to UNESCO to pressure the Export-Import Bank to stop funding destructive fossil fuel projects in the Great Barrier Reef of Australia.
Turtle Island Restoration Network, Center for Biological Diversity, and Pacific Environment raised extreme concerns regarding ongoing U.S. funding of major fossil fuel projects within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (GBRWHA) through the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank).
Download the letter in a PDF here. Download the Detailed GBR Marine Life and Fossil Fuel Project attachment here.
The bank, a federal agency, recently authorized nearly $5 billion USD in loans to support two new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities currently being constructed within the GBRWHA’s boundaries, near Gladstone, Queensland. Media reports indicate Ex-Im Bank is also considering funding for a major port expansion and coal terminal north of Bowen, also in the GBRWHA.
The groups filed a submission wit the U.S. delegation to UNESCO to draw attention to the Ex-Im Bank’s activities in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, which, in combination with other ongoing development, are harming it environmental and heritage values.
We requested that the U.S. delegation open dialogue and urge the Ex-Im Bank to adopt a new policy, specifically prohibiting funding of any project that may negatively affect a World Heritage Site. Other U.S. agencies, private banks, and oil companies have committed to avoid development in World Heritage Sites, and we ask that all U.S. agencies follow suit.
Download the letter in a PDF here. Download the Detailed GBR Marine Life and Fossil Fuel Project attachment here.
Source: http://www.seaturtles.org
