Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this articleCopy linkWA's Premier Roger Cook has backed the state's resources industry amid revelations his predecessor Mark McGowan pressured the environmental watchdog to withdraw emissions guidance, but conceded he was not privy to the conversation.
"The EPA is the master of its own destiny, but it doesn't work in a vacuum, it needs to understand the impact of its decisions", he said. A letter sent from the Chamber of Minerals and Energy and gas lobby, APPEA to Mark McGowan stipulated they were not allowed to inform their members of the new guidance.
The terms of reference governing the EPA's stakeholder reference group, also seen by the ABC, stipulates that "members will distribute these documents responsibly and only for obtaining feedback from the groups they represent. No documents are to be made available to the media". Within 48 hours, articles, editorials and full-page ads funded by gas giant Woodside were plastered across WA's only daily newspaper.
"So, it showed very clearly, in a way, just where the power lies in Western Australia on, particularly on climate."