Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Conroy, the Minister representing the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. The World Heritage Committee's draft decision of a week ago warns that Australia has just one year to avoid having the Great Barrier Reef added to the List of World Heritage In Danger and that we can avoid that by acting on that committee's recommendations to pause development in the reef until the strategic assessment is completed, rule out new ports in pristine areas and reject damaging port expansions. They say there has been limited progress on these recommendations by both state and federal governments.

Is the federal government now going to act on those recommendations to ensure that Australia will not be the only developed nation with a site on the List of World Heritage In Danger, or is it instead going to lobby other nations to water down that draft decision prior to the World Heritage meeting in Cambodia in June?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for her question. The Gillard government is committed to the protection of the Great Barrier Reef. The government is focused on tackling the challenges facing the reef, including climate change and the impacts of coastal development. The latest advice and draft recommendations from the World Heritage Centre regarding the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area have been released and will be discussed, as the senator mentioned, by the World Heritage Committee at its next meeting, in Cambodia in June 2013. These recommendations are only the first step in making process, and the extent to which the recommendations are accepted or amended is a matter for the World Heritage Committee at that June meeting.

While the Gillard government takes very seriously the concerns raised by the World Heritage Centre and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Australia has made substantial progress in implementing the World Heritage Committee's 2012 decision. The Gillard government is committed to adapting and improving the reef's management to allow for sustainable development while maintaining the reef's natural and cultural integrity. The Gillard government submitted an updated state-party report on the state of conservation of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area to the World Heritage Centre on 1 February this year. The report addresses all the recommendations of the World Heritage Committee, including the recommendations of the reactive monitoring mission. They are a number of very real threats to the reef which are common to reefs around the world, including climate change— (Time expired)

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Xstrata Coal, following its Glencore merger, have yesterday pulled out of building their coal port on Balaclava Island in the Fitzroy delta of the Great Barrier Reef, one of those pristine areas that the World Heritage Committee recommended be off limits. Why is it that industry is voluntarily leading the way to pull out of developing these pristine areas rather than being compelled to by the federal or, for that matter, the state governments? Will the federal government now actively protect this pristine area from other coal and gas port proposals?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Burke is concerned at the suggestion that the reef should be considered for listing on the in-danger list in 2014, as the Gillard government has already made firm and demonstrable commitments to implementing the committee's previous decisions and the recommendations of the UNESCO monitoring mission. Key amongst these commitments is the announcement by the Prime Minister on 24 April of this year that the Reef Rescue program will be extended and expanded and that the Gillard government provide a further $200 million to the program over the next five years. The World Heritage Committee has previously recognised that Australia's management of the Great Barrier Reef is considered to be best practice in many respects. Minister Burke will therefore ensure that the committee fully understands— (Time expired)

Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Xstrata cite as one of the reasons they have pulled out of this new port that there is 'excess port capacity' in Queensland. This is industry admitting that they do not need to build this port and, by extension, any of the other six coal and gas ports that are proposed. Now that industry has admitted it, will government grow a backbone and rule out putting new ports in the Great Barrier Reef?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

(—) (): Minister Burke is aware of media reports that Glencore Xstrata has decided to cease its development plans for the Balaclava Island coal export terminal due to adverse coal prices and shipping constraints. The environment department is seeking confirmation of these reports. The proponent for the Fitzroy terminal project is currently preparing a draft environmental impact statement for public comment. Both projects are being assessed because of likely significant impacts to listed threatened species and ecological communities—migratory species, wetlands of international importance, World Heritage properties and National Heritage places. The proponent for the Fitzroy terminal project is currently preparing a draft EIS under the EPBC Act. This project is being jointly assessed with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and, if after a thorough and rigorous assessment—(Time expired)