Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Milne for that question. The Australian government is committed to a comprehensive environmental approval and monitoring process under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 to ensure matters of national environmental significance are protected. Former environment minister Malcolm Turnbull made it a condition of the EPBC Act approval that Gunns must submit an environmental impact management plan for approval. To date, 13 of 16 modules of the plan have been approved. On 5 January 2009 the then minister for the environment, Peter Garrett, set the final date for a decision on the remaining three modules at 3 March 2011. I can advise the chamber that yesterday representatives from Gunns contacted the department and indicated that the company was seeking tougher environmental controls than were contained in the original application. This included tougher controls in relation to the use of plantation timber by the mill and the use of an elemental-chlorine-free light bleaching process. The company further sought that, if approvals were to be given, they reflect these more stringent environmental controls. The department needs to assess these proposed variations for the original pulp mill proposal and allow the independent expert group to examine them. The minister expects this process to be complete and that he will be in a position to consider updated advice from his department next week. Gunns can begin construction under the approval conditions but it cannot operate the mill unless all 16 modules are approved. (Time expired)