Penny Wright (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I would just like to remind the chamber what this motion was about and what we were asking the chamber to agree to. The giant Australian cuttlefish is a magnificent marine creature which is found in South Australia's Upper Spencer Gulf. It has a unique breeding season at Point Lowly. It is the only one of its kind known in the world, and tourists from all over the world come to view this unique phenomenon.

There has been a catastrophic decline in the numbers of the giant Australian cuttlefish, from a high of over 200,000 in 1999, to over 125,000 following an assessment done just three years ago, to 10,000 now. The causes are not known but further industrialisation is planned for this area. The South Australian government has not been taking sufficient action. We have called on the Gillard government to urgently reassess whether this precious species should be eligible for listing under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Unfortunately, the chamber did not support that motion.