AUSTRALIA · HCACourt order
Australia's High Court rules planners must weigh overseas emissions in Mount Pleasant coal mine case
The High Court of Australia on October 7, 2026, dismissed MACH Energy's appeal over its Mount Pleasant coal mine expansion in a 3-2 ruling, finding planning authorities had to consider conditions minimizing all greenhouse gas emissions, including Scope 3 emissions from coal burned overseas. The decision upholds a 2025 NSW Court of Appeal win by a Hunter Valley residents' group.
Order (ABC News) → · Al Jazeera, AAP
Key points
- Three of five High Court judges dismissed MACH Energy's appeal over the Mount Pleasant mine expansion near Muswellbrook, New South Wales.ABC NewsAl JazeeraAAP
- The majority found the NSW Independent Planning Commission had to consider conditions minimizing all emissions, including Scope 3 emissions.ABC NewsAl Jazeera
- The ruling upholds a July 2025 NSW Court of Appeal decision won by residents' group DAMSHEG.ABC NewsAAP
- MACH sought to extend the open-cut mine's life to 2048 and nearly double its annual output.ABC NewsAl Jazeera
- MACH said it accepted the decision; the mine can keep operating under its existing approval until the end of 2032.ABC NewsAl Jazeera