Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I have struggled with my voice this week, so hopefully Broadcasting can help me out if I'm a little bit quiet. This is an important debate and so, as the Special Envoy for the Great Barrier Reef, I'm going to push through, and thank you for your indulgence.

The truth is that our government is doing more than any other government has done to reduce emissions, to reach net zero, to transition our energy market, to invest in renewables, to work with our partners around the world and to tackle to climate change, which is a risk to coral reefs around the globe, including the Great Barrier Reef. Our government is doing more than any other government has done previously. And the truth is very different from that put by the mover of this motion, Senator Whish-Wilson, and that is that, after a disgraceful decade of denial and delay on climate policy, a motion from the Greens political party in this chamber won't help the Great Barrier Reef, but action by members on this side of the chamber, by a Labor government, will. That is why we are working to take action on climate change and to protect the Great Barrier Reef.

In my contribution today I will do the same thing that I've done every day since being appointed as the Special Envoy for the Great Barrier Reef: I will talk about the facts of the reef because I know there is some misleading information out there. Our government has been transparent and accountable when it comes to the Great Barrier Reef's health. I'll talk about the action that we're taking to protect the Great Barrier Reef, to ensure that it is resilient against climate change, and I'll talk about how we're bringing people together on this task, because the one thing that the mover of this motion won't admit is that we can't take action on climate change and improve the health of the Great Barrier Reef alone; we must do that in partnership with countries around the world and we must do that with communities across the country, but particularly in regional Queensland. What we don't want to do is divide and make this a political debate about who is right and who is wrong and not accepting the science. What we need is to bring everyone together so that we can walk this journey together and ensure that the Great Barrier Reef is protected for generations to come.

I live in regional Queensland. I'm surrounded by some of the world's most incredible natural assets. I have the World Heritage listed Wet Tropics rainforest on the one side and the Great Barrier Reef on the other. The reef is literally my backyard, and so, as someone who lives and breathes our unique natural environment, having the privilege of being the Special Envoy for the Great Barrier Reef is something that I take extremely seriously.

I also have a deep sense of responsibility to the task at hand, the challenges we face and the future that we leave behind because, while this might be a debate today in Canberra, I'd argue that senators from Queensland understand this is about Queensland communities. We can have a motion moved by a Tasmanian senator but, when we talk about the Great Barrier Reef, we're talking about the lives and livelihoods of people in Queensland, and so I will talk from that experience, as I always do.

Our precious Great Barrier Reef is currently experiencing a coral bleaching event. Aerial surveys conducted in recent weeks by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Australian Institute of Marine Science confirm that there is a widespread bleaching occurring at the moment. Those two agencies, based in North Queensland, up there in Townsville, have been reporting on the health of the reef every single week since the start of summer. They have been transparent and accountable, and they have been doing incredibly good work. I will not have the work that they've been doing disparaged by those in this chamber. They have been making sure that they've been keeping people up to date. Unfortunately, the news that they had to deliver in the last couple of weeks has been difficult news for them to share as well.

Those scientists suggest that the heat stress has not been even across the reef and that coral bleaching observed has been variable, but we know that in the next couple of weeks, in-water surveys will collect data to help us understand the extent of the bleaching. For example, this will tell us whether there is evidence of bleaching at deeper reef habitats or whether this is contained to shallow waters. It is also important to note that bleaching of corals does not always result in coral mortality. If conditions cool, there is an ability for corals to recover. We've seen this occur with previous bleaching events, although, as we know, having these events closer together is making it more difficult for reefs to recover. This is the predicament that we are in.

There have been high winds and swell over the last week, which has resulted in sea surface temperatures starting to drop, but the fact is that we won't know the full impact of this event until it ends. This is the difficult news for many to take. Many Australians and citizens across the globe may be concerned at the reports, and this is completely understandable. It is our national treasure, and people come from far away to experience what the reef has to offer.

I want to acknowledge, rather than disparage or discredit, our tourism operators. I want to acknowledge the work they're doing, because many of them are incredible custodians of the reef and spend more time out there than most. They also have a big stake in this. I want to thank them for their ongoing work during this period, being another set of eyes and ears on the water.

Of course, we know that there is no quick fix or silver bullet in this equation, but what this does highlight is the need for action on climate change. It is the biggest threat to our Great Barrier Reef and reefs across the world. It highlights the need not for motions in the Senate but for government actions. We are a government that has taken decisive action when it comes to climate change. In fact, as those in this chamber know, one of our first acts in government was to enshrine emissions reductions targets into legislation. We know that the most important thing that we can do right now is to deliver on those emissions reduction targets, to increase our renewable energy use and to ensure that we are taking action on climate change after 10 years of delay and denial under the previous government. We have rectified the appalling track record of climate action under the Liberals and Nationals. I am angry and saddened that we lost a decade under a government that were climate change denialists and that refused to accept the science. The science was always up for debate under the Liberal and National parties—it always was and it continues to be.

The science has been telling us for a while now that temperatures are rising, and here we are again having this debate. Of course, before the Liberal government, there were others in the chamber who tore down the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, again costing us valuable time. There were 10 years of delay and denial, assisted by those in the chamber who now cry and now call for action. Yet when they had the opportunity 10 years ago, they refused to take it. But now, under a Labor government, we are on a credible path to net zero and we are transitioning our economy to a low-carbon one. This is to give the reef the best chance to be healthy. It's a diverse ecosystem. We need to respond to the challenge of climate change, which is what we are doing.

We also need to ensure that there are effective management actions in place. In Australia, our reef is very well managed. The reef authority and AIMS are world-class. They need to be supported in the jobs that they do, which is exactly why our government delivered more than $163 million in last year's budget to ensure that AIMS remains at the forefront of marine science and continues developing innovative solutions to protect the reef. In partnership with the Queensland government, we're investing $4.7 billion to protect the reef's resilience. We're getting on with the job. We're working in catchments with farmers, traditional owners and scientists to improve the quality of the water that flows into the reef. We're doing practical things, like remediating stream banks to reduce nutrient run-off. We're controlling crown-of-thorns starfish, which feed on coral. The teams out on the water have had great success, and they're using the data they're receiving from this monitoring to change their management plan and react quickly. We're phasing out the use of gillnets in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage area by mid-2027 and transitioning to more sustainable fishing practices. We know that the zoning legislation 20 years ago was controversial, but we know that it was important for the reef, because when you protect the marine park you protect the reef. Importantly, we're reforming Australia's environment laws—a critical piece of work that the previous government failed to acknowledge.

Beyond our shores, we've worked incredibly hard to restore our international credibility when it comes to climate change and the environment. We are among the best reef managers in the world, and we're proud to share that reputation. Last year, we had confirmation that the World Heritage Committee would not list the Great Barrier Reef as endangered, and, despite those opposite down this end of the chamber, this is a good outcome for the reef. It doesn't by any stretch mean that the work is over. It really is just the beginning. I reject accusations from those down the other end of the chamber.