Dorinda Cox (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of this MPI put forward by Senator David Pocock. It was absolutely shameful to see this government not just once but twice vote down an inquiry into Middle Arm. It begs the question: what have they got to hide? What are they hiding over there?

We know that this is a dirty petrochemical hub. We know that it will be in a place that currently holds ancient petroglyphs and the only known remaining rock art in the Darwin area, and it will put them at risk. We know that it will increase the Northern Territory's carbon emissions, and we know that it will be an export terminal for gas for the Beetaloo and Barossa gas fields. We also know that the government is aware of all of this and is completely ignoring it all. So what else is this government hiding that means it's so scared of the Senate doing its job, given that the Senate is the chamber of scrutiny, after all?

This project does not stack up. It doesn't stack up on the health front; it certainly doesn't stack up on the front of cultural heritage protection; it doesn't stack up on the environmental or climate fronts; and we have some serious doubts that it will, in fact, stack up on the economic front. One point five billion dollars of taxpayer money has been put aside for this project, and the government wants to do this without any scrutiny—that's the laughable joke in this—and so without an opportunity for the Senate to ask any questions to the traditional owners, to the parents, to the doctors or to anybody, in fact, who has issues with Middle Arm.

I met this morning with Australian Parents for Climate Action, who told me of many things that they had heard from politicians in this place and the meetings they'd had that would absolutely turn your hair white. It's the sheer hypocrisy. We expect that from the coalition. For a decade, people have expected that and they became attuned to that. When people come into this place and they talk to other MPs and other politicians who are now in government, who in opposition said things like, 'Oh, yes, of course we'll change that,' and then don't, they are surprised. They are dumbfounded. But guess what? The mirage that the government have built is cracking. They see greenwashing, lies and absolute ignorance. They see a government saying 'the climate wars are over' whilst destroying our cultural heritage and knowingly setting off all of these carbon bombs in our communities. It is absolutely disgraceful.

Senior Larrakia people have said this artwork that exists right in the heart of Darwin is priceless for their mob and should be considered priceless. In fact, it is part of Australia's history, as I said last night in my speech. Both the Northern Territory and federal governments have failed to follow any of the cultural protocols that they claim to have at a state and federal level in regard to consultation with Larrakia people. I said last night when I spoke to the motion to establish this inquiry that Labor again sat alongside the opposition and voted this down, but this is a vital point. We are seeing this happen on the back of the Juukan Gorge disaster. We watched on with absolute shock and heartbreak the images of the sacred sites that were caved in—blown up, in fact—that caused worldwide outrage. Firstly, how could such a tragic event take place? But secondly, how could it be legal for this to be destroyed? I was the member of the Joint Select Committee on Northern Australia that did those two reports. The first one was titled Never again and the second one was titled A way forward.

We are in a place where we continue to see examples of industrial development, including my home state of Western Australia and on the Burrup Peninsula, which I have talked about at length, being put at risk by industry and by people saying, 'We are going to have to make a couple of sacrifices.' Are we sacrificing our own children's health because of the economic benefit that they think is going to come from it? Because that is the stage we are at now.

We absolutely need to hear from traditional owners about how this project could impact on cultural heritage, their country, their environment, biodiversity. Again, we will keep talking about this issue and we will keep pursuing it. I thank Senator David Pocock for continuing to listen to those voices that are being brought into this place.