Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Environment and Water) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Kennedy is quite right—millions of hectares of the Mitchell grass plain are covered in prickly acacia, which of course competes with other types of native grasses and plants but also reduces the habitat that our native animals have to make their homes. They can't get through the prickly acacia. He has spoken to me before about the potential use of these woody weeds as a source of bioethanol, and of course that's something very worth exploring. The minister for infrastructure and transport and the Minister for Climate Change and Energy are both very actively exploring opportunities for bioethanol and other biofuels. Indeed, the minister for training is also supporting apprentices to upskill in the areas of biofuels, including ethanol.

I'd say our government is working to reduce those woody weeds, through my portfolio of the environment. We're spending millions of dollars dealing with problems like prickly acacia and also gamba grass—a huge problem right across the north of Australia. It again competes with native species and reduces habitat for certain plants and animals but is also a huge fire risk. We know that, when gamba grass and other types of introduced grasses take off in places like Kakadu National Park and Litchfield National Park, they burn hotter than native vegetation—so the impact of fires is much worse when we've got those invasive species.

I agree with the member for Kennedy that these are ideas worth exploring. I'm sure the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government and the Minister for Climate Change and Energy would be happy to talk with him. One other thing I want to tell him is the CSIRO has recently been looking at microalgae as a source of bioethanol. I know he is very interested in asparagopsis seaweed and its introduction into feedstock for cattle and the potential to reduce methane emissions. Here's microalgae for fuel. (Time expired)

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