At yesterday’s National Press Club, Minister for the Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek released the 2021 State of the Environment Report.
The report highlights that overall, the state and trend of the environment in Australia are ‘poor and deteriorating’ – with ‘abrupt changes in ecological systems being recorded in the past five years’.
The Minister said Australia is one of the world’s deforestation hotspots. Between the year 2000 and 2017, Australia cleared over 7.7 million hectares of threatened species habitat across the country.
“Much of this clearing occurred in small increments. More than 90 per cent of it was never assessed under our environmental laws.”
The Minister said while Australia’s environment is bad and getting worse, and much of the destruction outlined in the State of the Environment report will take years to turn around, she displayed optimism about the steps that can be taken over the next three years.
“Legislating strong action on climate change is a great start.”
She said in her role she will be guided by three essential goals, namely to protect, to restore, and to manage Australia’s environment.
“To offer proper protection, we need to set clear national environmental standards – with explicit targets around what we value as a country, and what the law needs to protect.
“This will require a fundamental reforming of our national environment laws – and empowering a new Environmental Protection Agency to enforce them.”
She said to help guide changes, by the end of the year the Australian Government will formally respond to the Samuel Review, an official review into the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act written and released by Graeme Samuel two years ago.
“We will then aim to develop new environmental legislation for 2023.
“But in the meantime, I’d like to see an immediate start on improving our environmental data and regional planning – establishing a shared view around what needs to be protected or restored, and areas where development can occur with minimal consequence.”
She said the government will set a national goal of protecting thirty percent of our land and thirty percent of our oceans by 2030.
“We will explore the creation of new national parks and marine protected areas – including by progressing the East Antarctic Marine Protected Area.”
The State of the Environment Report also makes it clear that we must do a better job at repairing environmental damage that has already occurred.
She said while stopping future destruction is essential and the most cost effective way to address the environmental crisis, repairing past damage is also needed.
“The Australian Land Conservation Alliance estimates that we need to spend over $1 billion a year to restore and prevent further landscape degradation.”
“The scale of this challenge means that governments can’t do the job alone.
“We need to work with industry and philanthropic partners – many of whom are already doing great work.”
Minerals Council of Australia Chief Executive Officer Tania Constable said a focus on clear, effective and outcomes-based regulation will provide certainty for businesses, the community and decision makers achieving the high national environmental and heritage standards Australians expect.
“Timely approvals, national coordination and clearer guidelines will help Australia’s minerals industry create more jobs, boost investment and contribute to improved national biodiversity and heritage outcomes.
“Australia’s minerals sector is committed to the protection and restoration of our unique environment and national heritage values.
“The minerals industry is at the forefront of innovation in environmental management – investing heavily in data collection and conservation science, working in partnership with leading institutions.”
