Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Nature Repair Market Bill 2023 is another demonstration of the Albanese Labor government's commitment to the environment. I've listened to much of the debate from the members who have already spoken. Having heard the criticisms of it from some members of the coalition and some of the Greens gives me the view that we, the Labor side, have got this bill about right.

We live in a world of extraordinary natural beauty: breathtaking landscapes combining valleys, mountain ranges, beautiful coastlines, magnificent forests, vast ice lands, deserts, rivers and waterfalls; unique natural iconic places that each year attract tens of millions of visitors from across the world; natural wonders that sustain unique flora and fauna that have adapted to the climatic conditions and topography of the locality and that not only sustain life but often considerably add to the economic viability of the local area. The Great Barrier Reef is a prime example of that, with an estimated 64,000 jobs dependent on it and adding some $6.4 billion annually to the regional economy.

Regrettably, too much of our natural world has been destroyed or degraded. The World Wide Fund for Nature's Living planet report 2022 states that wildlife populations have declined by an average of 69 per cent in the past 50 years. Climate change, population growth, rising consumption, greed, incompetence and mismanagement are all contributing to the demise of the earth's natural resources at an alarming rate. Already too much has been lost. According to an article authored by David Dodwell:

… 40 per cent of the world's forests have been lost in recent decades, with around 10 million hectares still being lost every year … 37,000 of the 134,000 animal and plant species it assesses face direct extinction threats. About a quarter of the world's 20,000 bee species, essential for pollinating food crops … are feared to have been lost since 2016.

That means that, in just 6½ years, we have lost an estimated one-quarter of the world's bee stocks. That figure alone should alarm people.

Whilst there are indeed countless examples of wonderful environmental restoration projects—and, I should say, mostly from local community volunteers—the fact remains that every year the environmental losses far outweigh the gains. It is notable that the worldwide Rotary organisation has now added the environment as the seventh pillar of Rotary service around the world. Speaking of Rotary, in my own local area—

Debate interrupted.