Dear Peter
Many thanks for letting us know about the imminent threat of clear-felling
Swiftie breeding areas in the Wielangta Forest.
Is anyone out there looking a court action to require Peter Garrett to carry
out his duties? This was done, ultimately unsuccessfully but with some
delays, in relation to the Port Phillip Channel Deepening Project.
I'm no lawyer but I reckon Clause 60 of the EPBC Act says that Peter Garrett
can suspend the Regional Forestry Agreement.
60 Emergency suspension of effect of bilateral agreement
(1) This section applies if the Minister is satisfied that:
(a) the State or Territory that is party to a
bilateral agreement is not complying with it, or will not comply with it;
and
(b) as a result of the non-compliance, a significant
impact is occurring or imminent on any matter protected by a provision of
Part 3 that is relevant to an action in a class of actions to which the
agreement relates.
(2) The Minister may suspend the effect of the agreement or
specified provisions of the agreement for the purposes of this Act or
specified provisions of this Act, by notice:
(a) given to the appropriate Minister of the State or
Territory; and
(b) published in accordance with the regulations.....
Further the February 2007 variation to the RFA explicitly replaces the old
Clause 70 with one that says that recommended actions in a Recovery Plan for
a species listed in Attachment 2, Part A of the RFA (These include the Swift
Parrot) will be carried out in accordance with the timelines in the Plan or
as soon as possible afterwards.
And Action 2b of the 2001-2005 Recovery Plan (I haven't managed to access
the latest version - still a draft?) is "To implement appropriate management
regimes to conserve swift parrot habitat on public and private land" with a
method being "Target priority foraging, roosting and nesting habitat on
State Forest and other Crown Land for additions to the reserve system
through the Regional Forest Agreement process where they include swift
parrot habitat." This seems to have been expected to be completed by the
end of 2005.
Is the Tasmanian Government complying with this? Really?
Remember how Peter's predecessor, Ian Campbell, stopped a wind farm (in
different circumstances - an EES) on very thin grounds about OBPs. There
are surely much stronger grounds for action in this case.
The Environment Defenders Office (lawyers) might well be interested in this
as they put a lot of effort into explaining the EPBC Act to interested
people.
Michael Norris
Melbourne
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