Climate-sceptic thinktank refuses to disclose funders in heated Senate inquiry
A thinktank known for its rejection of the climate crisis and a conservation group that has opposed renewable energy projects refused to identify their funders during a heated Senate inquiry into climate and energy misinformation on Wednesday.
Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson, chair of the committee, asked Rainforest Reserves Australia’s vice-president, Steven Nowakowski, who had funded nine full-page newspaper advertisements promoting an open letter attacking a shift to renewable energy and promoting nuclear.
Nowakowski said they were paid for by donations, some coming from the signatories of the letter, but would not name them.
The inquiry also questioned RRA about who had paid for legal action it took this year to challenge a federal approval of the Gawara Baya windfarm in north Queensland. Michael Seebeck, a member of RRA, said the legal proceedings were covered by “an anonymous private individual” but Nowakowski added that person was not linked to fossil fuel interests or nuclear.
The charity has become a prominent voice among conservatives and some media for its opposition to renewable energy, with claims including that large numbers of wind and solar projects are destroying habitat. RRA also defended its use of AI to generate more than 100 submissions on renewable energy and projects after the Guardian reported citations to nonexistent scientific articles, a nonexistent windfarm, and nonexistent public authorities.
Labor senator Michelle Ananda-Rajah pointed out that seven of the 15 references cited in opposition to the proposed Moonlight Range Wind Farm were fabricated. One of those references was a 2018 report on contamination at the Oakey Windfarm, which does not exist in Oakey or Queensland. Nowakowski dismissed it as a distraction, but Ananda-Rajah countered that it spoke to the credibility of the organization.
Ken Carey, a resident from Ravenshoe in north Queensland, appeared as a community supporter for RRA and claimed the department had changed its name and that the data itself was accurate. However, Ananda-Rajah refuted this, stating that the Oakey windfarm was a fabrication and that seven out of 15 references did not exist.
Nowakowski acknowledged that the submission was written by a human but edited by AI. RRA has previously admitted to using AI-assisted tools for its submissions.
During unrelated court proceedings, it was revealed that billionaire mining magnate Gina Rinehart had given $4.5 million to the Institute of Public Affairs in 2016 and 2017, constituting a significant portion of the institute's income during those years. The IPA's executive director, Scott Hargreaves, refused to disclose current donors, citing policy and legal reasons.
The ongoing inquiry, called by the Greens, is expected to report in March next year.
