More than 100 climate protesters will face court, a 97-year-old minister of religion among them, following a weekend blockade at Port of Newcastle.
Groups began taking turns paddling into the shipping lane servicing the world’s largest coal port on Saturday morning in an action planned to last 30 hours.
But as 4pm passed on Sunday, marking the end of police permission for the protest, scores remained in the water expecting to be apprehended.
As a result, a total of 109 people were arrested – 49 men, 60 women and five juvenile demonstrators – police said on Monday.
Two of the men, aged 23 and 65, were remanded to appear before Newcastle Local Court on Monday, while the five minors will be dealt with under the Young Offenders Act.
The remainder were issued with attendance notices and will face court in January.
All have been charged with operating a vessel so as to interfere with others’ use of waters.
Premier Chris Minns said police faced a difficult situation as the protest had taken place annually since 2016.
“I wish those protests didn’t take place,” he told reporters in Sydney on Monday.
“Not only is the extraction and sale and export of minerals in NSW legal, it’s our single biggest export.
“If we don’t take some of the royalties from coal export, we will not meet our renewable energy targets in NSW.
“We won’t even come close.”
Mr Minns said he understood people’s passion but the revenue was needed to fund the transition to a renewable energy future
Transport Minister Jo Haylen said the port had since resumed normal operations.
“It’s up to the police to manage protest activity … in NSW and across Australia, we have the right to safely and peacefully protest,” she told reporters on Monday.
“But in terms of the operation of the port, those responsibilities and decisions rest with the harbourmaster and the port authority of NSW.”
Police allege the protesters purposely entered the harbour channel after the 4pm deadline lapsed despite warnings and directions.
Protest organiser Alexa Stuart said her 97-year-old grandfather, Uniting Church minister Alan Stuart, was among those arrested.
“If the government will not take action on climate change, the people will use civil disobedience,” she said.
“We wish we did not have to do this but the Albanese government needs to understand we are serious.”
Rev Stuart said he was doing his duty to his family and the planet.
“I am doing this for my grandchildren and future generations because I don’t want to leave them a world full of increasingly severe and frequent climate disasters,” he said.
Protesters demanded the government stop allowing new coal projects, tax fossil fuel export profits at 75 per cent to fund community and industrial transition, and pay for climate loss and damage.
The NSW Council for Civil Liberties said several legal observers were also arrested at the event and charged for undertaking activities that were nothing more than within their role as observers.
In a letter to NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb, the council called for the charges to be withdrawn.
“They are independent of the protest itself and do not take part in the protest, any decision-making regarding the protest, or directing protesters,” the letter read.
ACT Greens MLAs Rebecca Vassarotti – the only Environment Minister in the country to attend; Emma Davidson; and Jo Clay took part in the blockade on Saturday.
“The ACT Greens were proud to be at the Newcastle Blockade this past weekend,” Ms Vassarotti said in a statement.
“It was inspiring to see the courage of people young and old standing up for our future.
“Coal and gas are the major causes of the climate crisis.
“At the moment, climate change is tearing through our ecosystems.
“You can’t put a fire out by pouring more petrol on it. If we continue to mine and burn coal, oil and gas, we’ll witness further environmental decline.
“We’ll experience further economic losses – food, insurance and health costs will go up, and we’ll pay much higher energy bills.
“We must stop new coal, oil and gas projects, ensuring we can transition our economy to zero carbon energy while maintaining a safe climate. “The public are demanding leaders who stand against the climate crisis, rejecting more coal and gas projects.
