Christine Milne (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, and relates to the north-east peninsula of Recherche Bay. As the minister knows, it was listed on the National Heritage List in 2005 but was due to be logged this year until the financial arrangement brokered by my colleague Senator Brown resulted in the area being saved and placed in permanent protection. Notwithstanding the hostility of his colleague the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation, Senator Abetz, and the $2.5 million that Senator Abetz allocated to Gunns last week, will the Minister for the Environment and Heritage inform the Senate how the federal government intends to assist financially and in any other ways in the preservation of this fantastic national heritage site?

Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you to Senator Milne for the question in relation to Recherche Bay. As a West Australian, it is a name that I am familiar with because Bruni d’Entrecasteaux did in fact visit Recherche in southern Western Australia near Esperance. When he went to various places in the world—and he was an incredibly successful French explorer in the 1700s—I think he did not have as much—what will I call it?—inspiration in terms of naming places as other explorers had because I think he kept on recycling the names.

Robert Ray (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Robert Ray interjecting—

Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We all know that Senator Robert Ray knows how to discover his way to one place because he goes there so often. Recherche Bay is, as Senator Milne knows, an absolutely glorious part of the world. The history associated with the visits of  Rear Admiral or Vice-Admiral Bruni d’Entrecasteaux is very important to Australia. It is very important to the world, and I very much enjoyed my visit to the site. I enjoyed discussing it with John Mulvaney.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Housing and Urban Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr interjecting—

Paul Calvert (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr—I got it right that time—come to order!

Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was so impressed with the history and with the site that I was very surprised—and I think I have said that in answer to questions before here—that those who put forward the 1792 sites did not seek to list the 1793 sites as well. In fact, I took the initiative of encouraging a proposal for listing of the 1793 sites because there is an intrinsic link between the two. But Senator Milne is right: I did inscribe this property onto the National Heritage List. There are in fact only 23 properties on the list. We seek to make it a very exclusive, high-quality list, and that is the reason this site is on it.

As Senator Milne knows, and as you know, Mr President, the regional forest agreement, which I know the Greens do not support, certainly ensured that that property would be available for logging regardless of the listing. I know that is very upsetting to those who wanted to stop the logging, but what was always available was the opportunity for the Vernon family to enter into the sort of agreement that they had entered into. I congratulate the Vernon family for coming to this decision. I congratulate Dick Smith for his leadership role here. You have an example here of two pro-free enterprise Australians, the Vernon family and Dick Smith and his family, entering into an agreement to conserve an important part of Australian heritage. It is very much a free enterprise and, I would say, Liberal solution.

I have looked at whether there are programs of assistance. As Senator Milne knows, the Commonwealth does in fact run programs and invests tens of millions of dollars to conserve biodiversity. The natural reserve system fund, which seeks to create over the next 15 years a comprehensive and representative system of unique Australian biodiversity, has purchased properties such as Cravens Peak in Western Queensland, which has Australia’s highest known diversity of reptiles and habitat in extraordinary condition; New Haven in the Northern Territory, which has seven critically endangered air and land bird species; and Johns’ property on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, which has an extraordinary diversity of butterfly species and excellent habitat.

If the property in question at Recherche peninsula is put forward it will be assessed, but it will be assessed against those biodiversity outcomes of the programs. I do not think even Senator Milne would want me to seek to distort the outcomes of those programs, but I make the point in the short time available—and Senator Milne looks primed to jump up and ask a supplementary—that there are programs that can assist. (Time expired)

Christine Milne (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question: I want to ask the minister to continue to tell us about the financial and other ways in which the government intends to assist in preserving the site. I also want to know if the minister will approach the French ambassador to investigate ways of involving the French government in assisting the Australian government in preserving the site and enhancing the botanical and cultural interpretation through cooperation with many of the French academic institutions which hold valuable documentary and scientific materials, including botanical specimens which were taken from Recherche Bay 200 years ago.

Ian Campbell (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you to Senator Milne for giving me the opportunity to address those issues. We have in fact spoken to the outgoing French ambassador and I have scheduled a meeting with the incoming ambassador, I think in the very near future. We have agreed to put in $30,000 and share an archaeological study with the French. I think that is a very positive aspect to the relationship with France in relation to Recherche Bay. I might also add that we will be discussing cooperation on antiwhaling activities. The French government and the French environment minister are very committed to that and I will be continuing that discussion.

People who make donations to the Tasmanian Land Conservancy in relation to the purchase of this property will receive tax deductibility. If you were to give $100,000 to this fund and you were in the top tax bracket, you would get $47,000 back. It obviously depends on your tax treatment and your tax position, but someone who earns $100,000 could potentially get up to 47c in the dollar back. That is a very generous tax treatment. (Time expired)