A riveting expose of the global oil industry's multi-decade conspiracy to muddy the waters around the science of climate change and use the Australian government to undermine worldwide efforts to address environmental devastation.
Slick- Australia's toxic relationship with Big Oil takes a comprehensive look at the origins of the Australian petroleum industry, investigating what these companies knew about climate change and how they learned to wield influence and insert themselves into all facets of public life. Royce Kurmelovs reveals how the US petroleum industry was warned about its environmental impacts back in the 1950s and yet went on to build the Australian oil industry, which in turn tried to drill the Great Barrier Reef, sought to strongarm governments, and joined a global effort to bury the science of climate change and delay action despite knowing the harms it would cause.
Slick also tells the stories of fire and flood survivors, as well as of the activists engaged in a high-stakes fight for the future of Australia and of the efforts being made to save ourselves from catastrophe.
This superb, in-depth work of journalism provides an on-the-ground examination of how the fossil fuel industry captured Australia, and outlines what's at stake for the survival of the planet and our democracy.
About the Author
Royce Kurmelovs is an Australian freelance journalist and author. His work has been published in Rolling Stone AU, The Guardian, The Saturday Paper, BBC, VICE and other publications. His books include The Death of Holden (2016), Rogue Nation (2017), Boom and Bust (2018) and Just Money (2020). His fifth book, Slick, is due for release in August 2024.
Industry Reviews
'Around the world, the fossil fuel industry's campaign of disinformation and denial about global warming is perhaps the most consequential lie in human history. This comprehensive and carefully reported book shows how that lie was told in an Aussie accent, and why it mattered - and matters - so much.' - Bill McKibben, author The End of Nature
'A diligent, urgent, trenchant study of political influence at its stealthiest by a journalist who always does the work.' - Gideon Haigh
'If you've ever wondered how the oil and gas industry was able to capture our politics and wreck the climate, this insider's guide is what you've been waiting for. Slick goes back to the beginning to show how these masters of deception have enmeshed Australia in an industry that has knowingly put all of us in harm's way. The fires and floods, the heatwaves and political shockwaves: they knew what they were doing, and they did it anyway. Slick reads like a crime scene investigation: how the oil and gas industry knowingly stole the future out from under us.' - Scott Ludlam
'Slick is an entertaining and often disturbing story of the scoundrels' gallery of oil industry lobbyists, shills and execs, together with their lap dogs in politics, who will not stop until the last drop of oil is extracted and burnt, and to hell with the consequences for the planet.' - Clive Hamilton
'Rich in science and history, Kurmelovs paints a vivid picture of how the ambitious "oilmen" of the '60s became the slick oil and gas lobby we know today, co-opting politics, media and science, all while knowing the risks to the climate. A must-read for anyone who wants to know how power works in Australia.' - Rachel Withers
