The Black Finch Project
In June 2019, I came across an interesting project on my Facebook feed, the Black Finch Project, developed by Australian artist Charlotte Watson.
The Black-throated finch is an endangered bird now found in small populations in Queensland. One of these fragile populations is currently under threat from the proposed Adani Coal Mine in the Galilee Basin.
The Black-throated finch is representative of not only it’s own precarious position, but that of all other species currently threatened by the wider climate and biodiversity crisis. I welcome artists to share the voice of collective grief in The Black Finch Project.Charlotte Watson, artist.
Inspired by this project, I created three pieces to express my heartache and protest the government’s decision to approve Adani’s horrendous Carmichael Mine in Queensland’s Galilee Basin. The artwork was sent to the Black Finch project and displayed in a Melbourne art gallery along with 1,400 other Black Finch-inspired works of art, before being sent to politicians who were involved in approving the mine.
The video 0:53 mins) below features some of the artwork displayed in the gallery.
Details about the project and some of the beautiful artwork can be seen in this July 2019 article, Black Finch Project: the anti-Adani art campaign - in pictures, in the Guardian.
In addition, I turned these pieces into postcards and sent them to the politicians who were involved in approving the mine.
Townsville Mayor – Cr Jenny Hill
QLD Premier – Hon Annastacia Palaszczuk
QLD Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy – Hon Dr Anthony Lynham
QLD Minister for Environment and the Arts – Hon Leeanne Enoch
QLD Opposition Leader – Mrs Deborah Frecklington
QLD Shadow Minister for Natural Resources and Mines – Mr Dale Last
Prime Minister – Hon Scott Morrison MP
Minister for Resources – Senator Hon Matt Canavan
Minister for Finance – Senator Hon Mathias Corman
National Party Leader, Minister for Infrastructure Transport and Regional Development – Hon Matthew McCormack MP
Australian Treasurer and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party – Hon Josh Frydenberg MP
Minister for Environment – Hon Sussan Ley MP
Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction – Hon Angus Taylor MP
One of each postcard was sent to the politicians every month with a different hand-written message.
26 July 2019 - Postcard 1:
Dear <Politician>, No matter what your personal motivation is for supporting the Adani mine, or the coal industry in general, please ask yourself… is it worth it?
9 August 2019 - Postcard 2:
Dear <Politician>, For our children’s sake, please stop your greed, look at the consequences and listen to the experts, to the Australian people (especially our children) and to your conscience!
25 September 2019 - Postcard 3:
Dear <Politician>, Doesn’t your heart bleed, just a little, when you see the consequences of your greed?
Sadly, despite strong campaigning against the mine from scientists, artists, environmentalists, farmers, and traditional owners, Adani’s open-cut Carmichael Mine was approved and began construction in July 2019. It started mining commercial-scale shipments of coal in December 2021. Difficulties in securing funding due to intense negative publicity meant that the company’s plan to produce 60 million tonnes of coal per year was downsized to 10 million tonnes of coal. Adani Mining also changed its name to Bravus Mining & Resources in an attempt to avoid the negative publicity connected to its name.
The mine has significant environmental impacts including the production of enormous amounts of greenhouse gas emissions and the amounts of water needed from rivers and underground aquifers that will see more than 300-metre drops in the local water table and “typically between 20 and 50 meters” beyond the mine’s boundary according to Adani’s own Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement. The mine is also located in an area that contains several threatened species such as the yakka skink, ornamental snake, the waxy cabbage palm, and the black-throated finch.