Newcastle harbour climate paddle-out ends without arrests after court challenge

Newcastle's latest climate protest ended without arrests on Saturday after a legal attempt to stop the gathering failed. Organisers said more than 600 people paddled onto the harbour for Rising Tide's Paddle for the Planet demonstration, while hundreds more watched from Horseshoe Beach. NSW Police also confirmed there had been no arrests when the event finished.

Coal exports and the state election

The action opposed coal exports and continued fossil-fuel development. Rising Tide spokesperson Joe Hallenstein accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of presenting Australia as a climate leader at COP31 in Türkiye while his federal government and Premier Chris Minns's NSW government continued approving coal and gas projects. That was the campaign group's criticism, not a finding by the court.

Participant Scott Alcorn said his frustration extended across federal, state and local government, which he believed were not doing enough to limit climate damage. He said the turnout showed that many other people shared those concerns.

NSW Greens climate change and justice spokesperson Sue Higginson argued that climate policy and fossil-fuel approvals should remain central to the state election campaign. The election is scheduled for March 13, 2027. She acknowledged that living costs were voters' biggest concern, but said that did not erase concern for local environmental health. She also criticised Labor and the Coalition for focusing on One Nation and presented the Greens as a different political choice.

Higginson also challenged the Minns government's proposed legislative response affecting the Mount Pleasant coalmine in the Upper Hunter. The proposal would allow the mine to operate longer and produce more, after a High Court decision requiring global climate emissions to be considered in approvals. She accused the government of changing the law in response to a company's threat of pre-Christmas job losses, and said parliament was due to debate the matter the following week. Her characterisation of the government's motives remains her political assessment.

A court dispute before the paddle-out

Rising Tide had promoted the event from August. In the week before the protest, Newcastle Council moved to exclude the group and affiliated activities from council-owned land. Saturday's gathering instead used Horseshoe Beach, which is managed by Transport for NSW, so that council-land restriction did not stop it taking place there.

Police sought Supreme Court orders against the public assembly, raising water-safety concerns and pressure on police resources. Assistant Commissioner David Waddell and police lawyers argued that large numbers of participants on the water posed serious risks. A limit of 785 vessels applied to the event.

Justice Edward Muston rejected the police application on Friday. In explaining his decision, he weighed acknowledged safety risks against the public interest in political expression and peaceful assembly. The organisers' mitigation measures were relevant to that balance. The ruling was not a declaration that any action outside the notified protest would be lawful.

Harbour arrangements and the next protest

More than 900 people registered, according to organisers, with over 600 going onto the water. The on-water demonstration lasted about an hour and included a line of paddlers across the harbour. A limited police presence attended, mainly on foot. The Port of Newcastle had no shipping movements between 10am and 2pm.

Rising Tide says it plans a larger harbour action in late February, shortly before the NSW election. Its previously announced People's Blockade runs from February 25 to March 2, 2027. Those are plans for a later event, not a continuation of Saturday's no-arrest gathering. The kayak image accompanying this report is illustrative and does not depict the Newcastle protest or its participants.