Josh Wilson (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There's a huge challenge before us when it comes to decommissioning offshore oil and gas infrastructure. Six million tonnes of pipelines, rigs, risers and floating kit will need to be removed and recycled. It's estimated to be $60 billion worth of work, with half occurring in the next 10 to 15 years. It's a statement of the bleeding obvious to say that this work needs to be done with great care and to the highest standard, and, unfortunately, we've not positioned ourselves well for this challenge, considering how plainly it has stared us in the face. Three things are paramount: the safety of workers, the protection of our precious marine environment and the responsibility of oil and gas companies to bear the costs involved. The Woodside Northern Endeavour fiasco demonstrated that we can't take these non-negotiables for granted. It was a wake-up call about the risk of companies seeking to palm off their obligations in the absence of effective regulation.

Yesterday, I attended the launch of a fantastic piece of work on the elements that would constitute a best practice Australian decommissioning industry, which was written by Professor Tina Soliman Hunter and supported by the Maritime Union of Australia. I commend the Minister for Resources for her work and commitment in developing the government's decommissioning industry roadmap. Australia can and should develop a state-of-the-art approach to this challenge, with significant benefits for new maritime and circular-economy jobs and innovation, in order to deliver the highest standards of marine stewardship.