This week, resources industry representatives poured into Canberra for Mineral Week. To kick it off, the WA Environment Minister announced that he was in Canberra on Monday to make sure that the federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek understands exactly what WA expects. Last week, the West Australian premier bragged at a business breakfast that he was confident that the federal government knew WA was “coming for it en masse”.

It comes as the WA government is currently legislating reforms to the EPA, the thin green line that defends WA’s nature, to further weaken our state’s environmental protections.

WA is an incredibly special place. From the ocean, through the forests and woodlands to the arid centre, the landscapes and ecosystems are extraordinarily beautiful and biodiverse. We have turned out time and again to defend these forests, coral reefs and wetlands.

In 2021, 95 per cent of respondents to a WA government survey agreed that more of the beautiful West Australian forests we love should be protected. Three-quarters of West Australians agreed all native forest logging should end, and later that year we became the first state to ban native logging.

WA is just like the rest of the country, where 73 per cent of all Australians surveyed for the 2024 Biodiversity Concerns Survey said they supported strengthening environmental laws.

The West Australian government, and sections of our media, are presenting a false picture of what West Australian voters want to the rest of the country. I’m at Parliament in Canberra this morning with the heads of other peak environmental organisations to ensure the federal government hears the real story.

WA has an opportunity to benefit enormously from the transition to renewable energy, with the creation of thousands of good new jobs and sustainable industries. Rather than doubling down on polluting industries that can only thrive when nature suffers, we need policy and law frameworks that protect nature and prioritise the development of renewable energy.

The WA government is not just undermining nature protections. We are also the only state with rising emissions in the midst of an accelerating climate crisis.

Last summer was the longest, hottest, driest summer we have ever seen. The forests I live in and love were decimated by drought, with the resulting die-off christened a “forest collapse” the likes of which we’ve never seen.

Don’t believe that West Australian voters can be bought at the cost of everything that makes this state great.

It’s in our nature as West Australians to defend the places we love. It runs deep in our identity, and no one should try to pretend otherwise, however powerful they are.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.