• scarabic@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’m not very familiar with Australian politics or leaders so I can only go with what I see in those articles. First, I don’t see any climate change denial. I see a debate about renewables and nuclear

    Why are conservatives against renewables:

    They can’t meet our total energy needs.

    Wind and solar products are predominantly made in China and conservatives don’t want to feed the Chinese economy or increase dependence (one thing I do know about AU is that Chinese influence is quite heavy and a cause of great concern there).

    Why are conservatives pro-nuclear:

    It provides baseload capacity that supports wind/solar where they are weak.

    It has military applications.

    It creates large infrastructure spending within AU and supports mining industry.

    They believe it will rankle liberals.

    Maybe you have a point that conservatives who are dead-set against renewables will throw nuclear into the conversation as a distraction which they know will not go anywhere. But as an outside observer who doesn’t have built up associations with these characters, I honestly just see rational inclusion of nuclear in the energy mix. This all seems healthy to me.