Australia is breaking its carbon bond, but there's a cost
Key takeaways
- For more than 30 years, the 200-metre industrial obelisk had towered over three coal-fired power plants that sat at its base.
- But in the aftermath of the closure of the entire operation exactly 10 years ago, chimneys were toppled.
- With a wry smile, Brett likens their fate to a final "twist of the knife".
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Link copied Share Share article When carbon atoms bond with other elements, they produce compounds that can be difficult to break down. But where carbon is bound up with human lives, breakdown is difficult in different ways.
Controlled explosions at old industrial plants always attract a crowd, but if the building being demolished is a site of sentimental significance to an onlooker, the emotional response can be a little more complicated than sheer relish at the prospect of a spectacular blast.
When the big smokestack at the place where Mat and Brett Prentis had earned their living for decades was itself reduced to dust and smoke, the twin brothers felt the regret that comes with the loss of something of deep personal value.