Bridge anger as Adani royalty deal delayed

Police charge four people after climate protesters shut down a busy Brisbane bridge.

Extinction Rebellion protester Sophie Thompson hangs from her bamboo tripod on Brisbane’s Victoria Bridge.

Adani and the Queensland government will not sign a royalties deal for the contentious Carmichael coalmine in central Queensland’s Galilee Basin for another two months, after pushing back the original deadline.

The parties had aimed to reach an agreement by Monday but late that day Treasurer Jackie Trad confirmed the date had been delayed by “mutual agreement”.

Under the terms of the agreement, Adani’s royalties will be ­deferred for a number of years, and the company will have to then reimburse Queensland in full, with interest and “security of payment in place”.

“Adani has advised the commencement of construction of the Carmichael mine is not dependent on the finalisation of the Resources Regional Development Framework negotiations,” Ms Trad said in a statement.

The development comes as six people were arrested in Brisbane on Monday as part of two separate environmental protests, including two Galilee Blockade activists who “occupied” the offices of construction company FKG Group.

Galilee Blockade spokesman Ben Pennings said protesters had learned FKG Group was considering working as a contractor for Adani, prompting the action.

“FKG Group should be very scared of an angry public increasingly willing to risk legal sanction fighting for a liveable climate,” Mr Pennings said.

But an Adani spokeswoman said the company would not discuss its contractors and business partners “in order to protect these businesses from becoming the targets of activists”.

“After more than eight years of working on our project, we have demonstrated we will not be ­intimidated or deterred from ­delivering on our promises to Queenslanders and we continue to get on with the construction of the Carmichael project,” she said.

A 37-year-old woman and a 63-year-old man were charged with trespass over the protest at FKG’s offices. They are due to face court next month.

In a separate action, police charged four people after a 22-year-old midwife stopped Brisbane traffic by suspending herself from a bamboo “tripod” on the city’s Victoria Bridge, and live­streaming the ensuing drama.

Sophie Thompson, from Bardon in Brisbane, was charged with committing a public nuisance, causing an obstruction as a pedestrian and obstructing a police officer. The group Extinction ­Rebellion took credit for the protest, which also involved Ms Thompson waving a black umbrella with the message “climate denial is child abuse”.

Police allege Ms Thompson refused to lower herself from the structure, which was built using long bamboo poles, but climbed down an hour later when police started to dismantle the “tripod”.

Two lanes of traffic on the inner-city bridge were blocked until police were able to remove Ms Thompson. She was fined $300 for obstructing a roadway and $750 for obstructing police.

Extinction Rebellion has repeatedly disrupted Brisbane traffic in recent months, prompting the state government to canvass new laws making it easier for police to remove protesters.

If the new laws pass it is expected using a “tripod” to block transport will become a criminal offence carrying a maximum penalty of up to two years’ jail.