Greenhouse Mafia
| Company type | Television documentary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media, Environmental activism |
| Founded | February 13, 2006 |
| Headquarters | Australia |
| Products | Documentary film |
Greenhouse Mafia is the name of a television documentary broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on 13 February 2006, as part of its weekly current affairs series Four Corners. The documentary exposed that the phrase greenhouse mafia is an informal label used to describe Australia's carbon industry lobby. It featured contributions from former Liberal Party member Guy Pearse, host Janine Cohen, and others concerned about the fossil fuel lobby's influence. Drawing on Pearse’s doctoral research conducted at the Australian National University between 1999 and 2005, the program outlined how lobby groups representing coal, automotive, oil, and aluminium sectors have wielded considerable power to obstruct Australia’s attempts to curb greenhouse gas emissions, which were among the highest per capita worldwide in 1990.
Research by Pearse
Guy Pearse’s investigation revealed that lobbyists from key fossil fuel producing and consuming industries collectively referred to themselves as the 'Greenhouse Mafia.' These entities operate within Canberra through the Australian Industry Greenhouse Network (AIGN). Recorded interviews with AIGN members demonstrated their routine access to confidential government materials concerning energy and transport policies. Pearse presented evidence indicating that lobbyists had repeatedly drafted cabinet submissions, ministerial briefings, and departmental financial assessments over a period exceeding ten years.
This privileged position allowed fossil fuel industry representatives to ensure that government ministers received guidance favorable to their interests. Pearse contends that this level of influence is deeply rooted, with industry lobbyists effectively shaping Australia’s greenhouse policies since at least the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in 1998, and possibly even prior to John Howard assuming office as Prime Minister in 1996.
Four Corners program
The Four Corners episode titled "Greenhouse Mafia" examined findings from Pearse's doctoral thesis and included interviews with a political science academic, a senior federal official, the Federal Environment Minister, and a spokesperson for the Australian Industry Greenhouse Network responding to Pearse's assertions.
The program also featured discussions with current and former climate scientists from CSIRO. Dr Graeme Pearman, former Climate Director at CSIRO, claimed that management prohibited scientists from publicly addressing climate change policy matters and that he experienced repeated censorship before his redundancy in 2004. Another former CSIRO scientist, Barney Foran, recounted receiving an explicit request from the Prime Minister’s Department in 2005 to refrain from publicly discussing ethanol. Both scientists argued that the Howard Government was particularly sensitive to CSIRO researchers criticizing climate policies and that such censorship was unprecedented during their lengthy tenures at CSIRO.
Clive Hamilton's perspective
In response to the "Greenhouse Mafia" documentary, Clive Hamilton—director of the Australia Institute and one of Guy Pearse’s PhD supervisors—delivered a presentation on 20 February 2006 expanding on the concept of the "Greenhouse Mafia." He identified a "dirty dozen," a group of prominent climate change skeptics influencing Australian policy. This group comprised industry figures such as Hugh Morgan, John Eyles, Ron Knapp, Alan Oxley, Peter Walsh, Meg McDonald, Barry Jones (former head of APPEA), Chris Mitchell, Ian Macfarlane, Alan Moran, Malcolm Broomhead, and former Prime Minister John Howard. The "Greenhouse Mafia" chiefly represents sectors including coal, oil, cement, aluminium, mining, and electricity.
Subsequent publications
In July 2007, Pearse released High & Dry: John Howard, Climate Change and the Selling of Australia’s Future. Earlier that same year, Hamilton elaborated on his perspectives in Scorcher: The Dirty Politics of Climate Change, extensively building upon Pearse’s findings.
Both Pearse and Hamilton exposed the impact of the "Greenhouse Mafia" on the climate strategies of the Howard administration. A notable instance involved the Lower Emissions Technology Advisory Group (LETAG), which held confidential meetings with John Howard and government officials in May 2004. LETAG’s membership comprises executives from major fossil fuel and energy-intensive corporations such as Rio Tinto, Edison Mission Energy, BHP Billiton, Alcoa, and Orica. Confidential minutes disclosed apprehensions that Australia’s mandatory renewable energy target (MRET) was "work[ing] too well" and overly benefiting wind power.
Media mentions
- Journalist Geoffrey Barker cited the Four Corners episode on the "Greenhouse Mafia" during conversations about the politicisation within the Australian public service.
See also
External links
- Guy Pearse's publication - High & Dry: John Howard, Climate Change and the Selling of Australia's Future
- The Greenhouse Mafia, official page for Four Corners (transcript)
- "Silencing the critics" (The Age) and "The repression of the bleeding hearts" (Sydney Morning Herald). Articles by Sarah Maddison and Clive Hamilton published in Fairfax press newspapers on 27 January 2007.
- "Campaign to discredit wind blows to NSW" and "It's an ill wind ...", 19 May 2006. Articles from Sydney Morning Herald addressing climate change sceptics and nuclear industry attempts to undermine wind energy.