1,000 signatures reached
To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
Make Big Polluters Pay
Big coal and gas companies are pumping out more pollution, making more money and paying less tax than ever before. It’s time they paid their fair share.
Alongside other organisations in the Make Big Polluters Pay Alliance, we're calling on the federal government to force these big fossil fuel companies to pay a climate pollution levy.
Why is this important?
We believe in a future where our communities, Country, and climate are cared for — where no one is left to carry the cost of a crisis they didn’t create.
Right now, that’s not the world we’re living in.
Big coal, oil and gas companies have made enormous profits while driving billions of tonnes of climate pollution. Yet in Australia, they’re paying less tax than many teachers, nurses, and essential workers — while communities shoulder the rising costs of climate damage.
That’s not fair. And it’s not inevitable.
Climate change is already here. Across Australia and our region, people are facing more intense floods, fires, storms, droughts and rising seas. Insurance companies are pushing up premiums and food is more expensive than ever. Recovery after disasters is stretching communities and governments to breaking point.
The cost of climate disasters in Australia has reached $38 billion every year — around $3,500 per household. These are real costs, paid in lost homes, disrupted lives, damaged Country, and deepening inequality.
We believe those most responsible for this damage must contribute to repairing it.
We’re calling on the federal government to:
- Introduce a climate pollution levy on fossil fuel extraction, requiring coal, oil and gas corporations to pay for the harm their pollution causes.
- Establish a Climate Compensation Fund, using this revenue to support communities most impacted by climate disasters — in Australia and across our region.
This isn’t radical. It’s responsible governance. Places like Vermont and New York have already passed laws to create similar funds. Now it’s time for Australia to step up.
A just transition, starting now
Climate science and frontline communities are clear: fossil fuel expansion must end, and these industries need to be wound down. While we push for that transition, we can also ensure that — for as long as these companies continue operating — they are held accountable for the damage they cause. Because right now, the costs of climate pollution are being pushed onto families, First Nations communities, and those least able to afford it.
We’re coming together to say: It’s not right that communities pay the price while polluters walk away with the profits.
Add your name to call for a fairer system — one grounded in responsibility, care, and justice for people and planet.