Australia’s coal mining emissions paradox

This report by Ember examines the discrepancy between Australia's increasing coal production and its decreasing reported fugitive emissions, attributing the trend to the closure of gassy underground mines and changes in estimation methods for open-cut mining.

• Between 1990 and 2022, Australia's coal production grew by 170%, increasing from 201 to 542 million tonnes, while fugitive emissions only increased by 0.17% and emissions intensity fell by 63%.
• The reported decline in emissions is attributed to the closure of older, gassier underground mines and a shift toward open-cut mining, where emissions are increasingly based on non-verified individualised estimates rather than state-led regulatory averages.
• There is a widening gap between production growth and emissions reporting; open-cut mining grew twice as fast as reported fugitive emissions between 1990 and 2022, and more than three times faster since 2005.

APA

Ember (2025). Australia’s coal mining emissions paradox. https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/australias-coal-mining-emissions-paradox

Chicago

Ember. Australia’s coal mining emissions paradox. 2025. https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/australias-coal-mining-emissions-paradox.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Ember |title=Australia’s coal mining emissions paradox |date=27 March 2025 |url=https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/australias-coal-mining-emissions-paradox |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ember2025australias, author = {{Ember}}, title = {{Australia’s coal mining emissions paradox}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2025}, month = mar, url = {https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/australias-coal-mining-emissions-paradox}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }