Download THE HON GREG HUNT MP

THE HON GREG HUNT MP
Minister for the Environment
THE COALITION GOVERNMENT’S
PLAN FOR A CLEANER ENVIRONMENT: CLEAN WATER
Paper to the Australian Recreational Fishing Foundation and Australian Fishing Trade
Association Parliamentary Breakfast – Catching the Benefits
10th December 2013
CANBERRA
Introduction
It is a great pleasure to join you today and have the opportunity to talk about the Government’s
vision for our marine environment.
For more than 30 years now, Australia has been a world leader in the management,
conservation and sustainable use of our marine environment. Ours is a marine nation; we have
the third largest marine jurisdiction in the world—more than 14 million square kilometres of
ocean.
Around 85 per cent of our population live within 50 kilometres of the coast, and for centuries
our oceans have helped defined our national identity and lifestyle. Coastal communities depend
on the marine environment for their recreation and livelihoods.
It is important then that we protect and improve our unique environment, both marine and
terrestrial, for future generations.
Australia’s marine resources are a central focus of the Coalition Government’s environment
policy – our Plan for a Cleaner Environment. The plan rests on four pillars: Clean Air, Clean
Land, Clean Water and Heritage Protection.
This plan is an essential element of our national policy framework and encompasses simple,
practical actions that will achieve real, measurable results.
Clean Air centres on two important reforms: the abolition of the Carbon Tax and the
implementation of our Direct Action plan.
Clean Land is based on the Green Army, Landcare reform and approvals simplification,
otherwise known as the One Stop Shop.
One of Australia's most important natural assets - the Great Barrier Reef - is a particular focus
of the Coalition's Clean Water strategy. Our Reef 2050 plan seeks to tackle the risks to reef
health with a $40 million Reef Trust to fund major projects.
The primary goal of the final pillar, Heritage Protection, is to instil a new sense of pride in
Australia’s heritage.
Together, these initiatives form the backbone of the Coalition Government’s plan for the
environment.
We have a strong environmental record and will continue the tradition of practical, on-theground work that will protect our unique landscape, marine environment and wildlife for future
generations.
Today, I would like to focus on a key element of our environment policy that will be of
particular interest to those here today: our plan for Clean Water, encompassing Australia’s
marine reserves, strategic protection for the Great Barrier Reef and our vision for water security
through the Murray Darling Basin and investment in dams.
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1. Australia’s Marine Priorities
Recreational fishing is an important leisure pursuit for millions of Australians. So many people
who enjoy this pastime have come to it through family and friends, and will in turn pass the
understanding and love of fishing to future generations.
I would like to acknowledge now the important role recreational fishers play in caring for the
marine environment, and in helping us keep the oceans around Australia clean, healthy and
brimming with marine life.
Yet as a marine nation we are faced with challenges: increased nutrient loads and lowered
oxygen levels, rising temperatures, stronger and more destructive storm events, ocean
acidification, marine pollution - particularly marine debris.
The Government is deeply committed to working with the Australian community to ensure we
have healthy oceans into the future.
Marine reserves and the zones within them are just one of the tools we use to protect our
oceans. Other tools include working with industries such as commercial fisheries, oil and gas
and with the international community to improve the method or conditions under which they
undertake their activities.
Our marine commitment builds on the significant legacy started under the Howard Government
more than a decade ago.
Our achievements from that period included the rezoning of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
and in 2006, the creation of the world’s first representative network of marine reserves in
temperate oceans - the Southeast Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network - comprising 13
large-scale offshore marine reserves around Tasmania and Victoria.
The benefits to this approach have been significant. Marine reserves help protect and maintain
our unique biodiversity including endangered or threatened species – such as whales and
marine turtles and their habitats.
While not designed as a fisheries management tool, marine reserves can enhance fisheries by
ensuring important areas such as breeding areas are protected.
They also provide opportunities for research and provide a focal point for education about
marine ecosystems.
I am pleased that the Australian Recreational Fishing Foundation supports the establishment of
marine protected areas as a way to help manage our ocean environment effectively. I am sure
the Foundation has a big part to play going forward on these issues.
For marine reserves to be effective they must be established and managed using the best
available scientific, economic and social evidence.
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a) Marine Reserves Review
The Australian Government is committed to restoring confidence in the Commonwealth marine
reserve planning process.
That is why, as part of our election commitment, we undertook to immediately set aside and
review the existing management plans for the new marine reserve networks. The review will
ensure that the management of Australia’s marine reserve network is based on scientific rigor
and genuine consultation with affected communities and industries.
We intend to deliver new management plans for the Commonwealth marine reserves, plans that
protect marine ecosystems and accommodate the many industries and communities that use our
oceans.
We will be consulting fishers and other stakeholders, so that new arrangements can be put in
place to ensure there is ongoing engagement in reserve management and a pathway to
effectively advise the Government.
We will soon appoint an expert scientific panel to look closely at the science supporting the
current marine reserves, including proposed zoning and allowed uses.
Bioregional Advisory Panels will be established in each of the five regions to facilitate and
improve consultation with stakeholders. From these early advisory panels, I am looking to
establish regional groups to enable stakeholders to engage in the management of the reserves in
an ongoing way.
The outcomes of the review will inform the development of new management plans for the
marine reserve networks for the South-west, North-west, North and Temperate East marine
regions and the Coral Sea marine reserve.
The details of the scientific and bioregional advisory panels will be announced in the near
future, with significant work and consultation to be undertaken in the first half of next year.
The Government is committed to maintaining the external boundaries of the marine reserves
and looks forward to addressing those areas that have caused concern in the management plans
signed off by the previous Government.
The review will build on the success of previous Coalition Government decisions on marine
protected areas, including the rezoning of the Great Barrier Reef and the establishment of the
South-east network, and will look to enhance management consistency across all marine
protected areas in Commonwealth waters.
I should point out that the Southeast Commonwealth Marine Reserves Network Management
Plan is not part of the review. That plan is already in effect, and puts in place the zoning and
management arrangements that were created by the Coalition in 2007.
We intend to keep this management plan operating to ensure certainty for the users of the
South-east network – and because that plan was developed through extensive consultation with
stakeholders.
For the other reserves, until the new management plans come into effect, there will be no "on
the water" changes for users.
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Let me repeat – no “on the water” changes, either for users of the new reserves proclaimed in
November last year or for the reserves and conservation zones that pre-dated the proclamation
and are now incorporated in the Commonwealth system. Any management arrangements that
applied before November 2012 will continue to apply.
I hope that the deeper consultation on future management and the development of new
management plans will bring industries, communities and Government together to conserve
Australia’s oceans.
Recreational fishing is a great Australian pastime and our marine reserves also support a range
of industries and create jobs for Australians. That’s why I am very keen for the review process
to progress quickly so as to provide business and recreational users the certainty they need to
continue operating.
I look forward to working with the ARFF through the review and in the development of new
management plans.
b) Great Barrier Reef
Protecting the environment and economic growth are not mutually exclusive objectives, but
rather two essential elements of a single goal of a stronger Australia.
This is most evident in our strategic approach to protecting one of Australia’s greatest icons:
the Great Barrier Reef.
Getting the Great Barrier Reef’s management and protection right is a top priority for the
Australian Government.
The Great Barrier Reef and its adjoining catchments provide significant economic benefits to
Australia. The reef supports industries including tourism, agriculture, fishing and shipping.
Significant resources are also mined in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.
The Australian Government is committed to achieving a balance between development and
maintaining the reef’s natural and cultural integrity.
That is why any major development that could impact on the World Heritage area can only be
approved with the most robust conditions that ensure high environmental standards are met and
that all impacts are avoided, mitigated or offset.
Australia will continue to manage the reef effectively, using the latest science and management
practices to help maintain the outstanding universal value of this great natural wonder.
The issues are complex and sometimes difficult to manage, but we are addressing them through
a range of approaches—both on land and in the marine environment.
Our approach includes the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) Strategic
Assessment, which has been conducted in parallel with the Queensland Government.
The strageic assessment provides a big-picture analysis of factors impacting the World Heritage
Area.
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GBRMPA has carried out the marine component of the assessment to consider the impact of
activities on the water. The Queensland Government has undertaken a separate assessment of
the coastal zone component.
The GBRMPA Strategic Assessment addresses a number of challenges facing the reef that
must be addressed to improve overall water quality. Most significantly, this includes measures
to reduce sediment, nitrogen and nutrient flows, as these boost the population of the damaging
Crown of Thorns Starfish.
Going forward, the Strategic Assessment proposes a ‘halt and reverse’ approach to turn around
the health of the reef, including examining the cumulative effect of human activities and natural
forces rather than looking at impacts in isolation, adopting a ‘net benefit policy’ so that
activities produce an overall benefit to the condition of the reef and implementing a Reef
Recovery Program to restore the health of the reef by working with communities, local
industries, Traditional Owners and government agencies.
Everyone wants to see the reef remain one of the most biologically diverse places on the planet
so it can be enjoyed by future generations.
Having long-term actions and partnerships in place for tackling the challenges facing the reef
help to provide greater certainty for the community, industry and the environment.
The Strategic Assessment will also guide the Government’s Reef 2050 Plan and priorities for
the Reef Trust which will inject money into projects for long-term sustainability.
The draft GBRMPA Strategic Assessment – which was the largest and most comprehensive
ever undertaken in Australia – provides an opportunity for people to express their views on
how the reef can be protected long into the future.
As this is a large and complex assessment, the comment period will remain open until on 31
January 2014 to allow adequate time for the public and other stakeholders to comment.
c) Reef 2050 Plan
As I said earlier, the Strategic Assessment will inform and guide priorities for action under our
Reef 2050 Plan.
The plan will outline a strategic long-term approach to actions addressing key threats to the
Great Barrier Reef, including nutrient run-off, Crown of Thorns Starfish and species protection,
particularly turtles and dugongs.
The Government last week announced the allocation of an extra $1.1 million in funding to
further protect the Great Barrier Reef from the destructive Crown of Thorns starfish.
These starfish (COTS) can destroy coral faster than it can regenerate and is one of the most
significant threats to the reef. In recent decades COTS were responsible for 42 per cent of coral
loss.
Although COTS are normally found in reef environments, pollution and run-off entering the
reef has lead to an explosion in numbers causing considerable damage to the reef.
This new funding will support the Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators with an
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additional dedicated boat and crew to continue culling efforts into the new spawning season.
The funding announcement complements the Government’s election commitment to $2 million
under the Reef 2050 Plan for Crown of Thorns control and supports the existing $5 million
commitment to manage starfish and fund research to improve their management.
An Australian Government funded culling program is currently underway using a single
injection method that is harmless to other marine life. This new method will greatly increase
how quickly COTS can be brought under control on high value reefs.
With this more efficient control method the Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators
estimate they will be able to cull at least another 80,000 COTS from the reef.
The Reef 2050 Plan will also include the development of a Reef Trust, which will combine
both Australian Government and private funds to focus on improving coastal habitat and the
quality of water entering the Great Barrier Reef.
The Govenment will commit $40 million to establish the Trust, which will be jointly coordinated with the Queensland Government. The focus will be a strategic approach to
improving water quality and coastal habitat.
After an initial injection from the Commonwealth, funding will also be derived from the
pooling of offset funds for significant projects under Federal Law.
This would be provided as an alternative to the current practice of individual acquisitions. This
will enable a far more effective, strategic and transparent approach rather than the current ad
hoc purchasing requirements which are not part of a strategic reef improvement plan and which
in many cases provide limited environmental benefit.
The Trust will ensure that there is deep co-ordination of coastal and water quality management.
The Reef 2050 Plan will also include the continued delivery of existing commitments to
maximise water quality outcomes for the reef, through the previous Australian Government’s
$200 million Reef Rescue programme.
This funding will continue to support land managers to improve the quality of water entering
the Great Barrier Reef lagoon between 2013-14 and 2017-18.
The Reef 2050 Plan will build on existing funding commitments and the Reef Water Quality
Protection Plan.
The Australian Government will also seek stakeholder input into the development of the Reef
2050 Plan initiatives.
2.
Murray Darling Basin
I mentioned earlier that the Coalition Government has a strong track record of practical, on-theground work protecting the environment. This was evident in 2004, when the Howard
Government, working together with the states, oversaw the development of the National Water
Initiative.
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This was followed in 2007 by John Howard’s 10-point National Plan for Water Security, which
included reforms to develop a national plan for our greatest river system.
The Coalition Government will work to finish and build upon these important reforms of the
Howard Government.
We will achieve this in a balanced way, ensuring practical and workable steps are taken to
deliver a balanced outcome for the economy, for the communities of the Basin and for the
environment and ecology of the river system.
The Murray-Darling Basin Plan, established under the 2007 Water Act, is all about delivering a
healthy river system with healthy river communities that can sustain each other for decades into
the future.
Our ongoing challenge is to work within the realities of our unpredictable natural environment
to get the best outcomes for both our rivers and the communities that rely upon them.
The Basin Plan won’t stop future droughts and all of the problems they will inevitably create,
but it should mean that the river system is more robust and better able to face the tests of such
future droughts, thereby making our river communities more robust too.
A major focus of our Clean Water policy is measures to achieve the best outcome from the
Government's investment in the Basin by delivering effective national management, fixing
inefficient infrastructure, and empowering local communities to deliver water reduction targets.
3. Dams
Infrastructure projects are empowering local communities to improve agricultural productivity
and achieve better environmental outcomes.
Working with the states and through the Northern Australia White Paper process, we will
identify new water resource development prospects, including the potential for new dams, and
encourage state governments to plan and manage new developments consistent with National
Water Initiative principles.
Across Northern Australia, the scale of recent investment in water resource development and
associated infrastructure has been relatively modest. This reflects a number of significant
economic, structural and environmental barriers that are challenging to overcome.
Despite these barriers, there may well be potential for new agriculture developments through
construction of dams, on-farm water storages, the use of groundwater resources, and managed
aquifer recharge schemes.
Conclusion
To conclude I would like to once again acknowledge the important role recreational fishing
plays in Australia: both in helping to gain a greater understanding of our unique marine
environment and in being a part of an ongoing tradition that will be passed to future
generations.
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Working together we can make sure our precious marine environment continues to support and
help define us as a nation.
There is a saying that I’m sure many of you are familiar with “The worst day fishing is better
than the best day working”. We want to make sure Australians continue to have the
opportunity to experience that for themselves with access to a healthy, robust and thriving
marine environment.
Thank you.
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