Climate activists fined over protest outside Woodside boss Meg O’Neill’s Perth home | Fossil fuels

A group of climate activists have been fined over a foiled protest at the Woodside Energy boss’s family home.

About 10 counter-terrorism police were waiting for Jesse Noakes, 36, and Matilda Lane-Rose, 20, when they arrived at the Perth home of Woodside chief executive, Meg O’Neill, in August 2023 with paint, water balloons and a bicycle lock.

They, along with Emil Davey, 23, who was stopped by police as he drove past the house in his ute the night before the incident, were initially facing a charge of conspiracy to commit criminal damage.

But that was downgraded and they pleaded guilty in the Perth magistrates court to attempted unlawful damage and trespass.

In sentencing the Disrupt Burrup Hub members on Monday, chief magistrate Steven Heath said the trio had participated equally in the planning and preparation for the failed attempt to paint O’Neill’s garage door.

He also accepted they were committed to their cause to draw attention to Woodside’s activities and the amount of damage that would have been caused “was not great”.

But he said the decision to target O’Neill’s home and not her corporate office had elevated the level of the offending.

Davey and Lane-Rose were each fined $2,000 and Heath granted their application for a spent conviction.

Noakes was fined $2,500.

Outside court, Lane-Rose compared her fine to the $10,000 penalty recently handed to Santos for an oil spill off Western Australia’s coast.

“Who is more of a threat to people’s homes and lives – me, or Woodside?”

A fourth member of the group, Gerard Mazza, 33, who pleaded guilty to the same offences, will be sentenced later in the month.

Police had been aware of the group’s plans for about a week before their early morning arrival at O’Neill’s home with an ABC Four Corner television crew, who had intended to film the action.

In the days after the incident, the Western Australian premier, Roger Cook, said the action was carried out by “extremists”.

O’Neill also said the group were extremists and the action was designed to threaten her and her family.

During sentencing submissions, it was largely accepted the activists “crossed a line” of acceptable protest behaviour by going to O’Neill’s home.

But their lawyers pointed out the group had not entered the property or damaged it because they were arrested as soon as they arrived.

Noakes’ lawyer Nick Terry described the incident as “a publicity stunt to gain attention” for the group’s cause.

Cook also wrote to the ABC to complain about the broadcaster’s alleged “complicity” in the incident.

The Burrup Peninsula, in WA’s northwest, known as Murujuga to traditional owners, contains the world’s largest and oldest collection of petroglyphs.

Disrupt Burrup Hub claims Woodside’s operations in the area and its proposed expansion could produce billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide by 2070 and damage the ancient artefacts.

It has carried out a series of protests against Woodside in recent years including the release of stench gas at the company’s Perth headquarters which forced the evacuation of about 2,000 staff.

Woodside has been contacted for comment.