On National Threatened Species Day, Senator Whish-Wilson and Rosalie Woodruff MP highlight proposed EPBC law changes and the implications they have for Tasmania in the transfer of powers from the Commonwealth to the state.

Quotes attributable to Senator Whish-Wilson:

"This all started here in Tasmania in the fight to save the Franklin river.

"It was a watershed moment that led to the realisation that states could not go unchecked and strong environmental laws would be needed to prevent this from ever happening again.

Today’s report showing two trillion litres of water is missing from the Murray-Darling Basin shows the Liberal-National Government has mismanaged the River and set it on a trajectory to a slow trickle and ultimately death, the Greens say.

Greens Water Spokesperson and Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“The report by the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists today is devastating.

“Two trillion litres of water is missing. Why? Because of theft, corruption, corporate greed, floodplain harvesting, mismanagement and lack of action on climate change.

I rise to take note of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade report Inquiry into PFAS remediation in and around Defence bases: second progress report, which evaluates the government response to the initial inquiry that we had a couple of years ago. The PFAS subcommittee, of which I am a member, was re-established after the federal election last year, when the 46th Parliament resumed. It was re-established precisely with the purpose of scrutinising progress on the recommendations of the parliamentary inquiry into PFAS and the government's response to it.

I rise to make some short comments on the amendment from my colleague Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. I associate myself with the comments made by my colleagues. This government is doing what it does best: hiding from scrutiny, avoiding transparency, making decisions behind closed doors. We know that this legislation is ecocide. We know that you are environmental vandals. That's pretty clear. All you see nature is is as a commodity to use and abuse. Why?

The Greens have called on the Morrison Government to rule out lifting a ban on the importation of exotic parrot species into Australia.

Greens Environment Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“In the middle of a global pandemic caused by a zoonotic disease, the Federal Government should be banning the trade of wildlife, not making it easier.

“The science is well established on the link between wildlife consumption and the transfer of zoonotic diseases to humans.

Tasmanian Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson today calls on the federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley not to weaken environmental conditions that protect Tasmanian devils for the benefit of mining company Venture Minerals. This comes as peaceful protesters disrupt mining activities at the controversial re-opening of the Riley Creek Mine in the Tarkine. 

“I have formally written to Sussan Ley to ask why she is considering weakening federal environmental protections at the request of a mining company. 

The Greens are calling on the South Australian Government to guarantee the state won’t lose a single gigalitre of water allocated to it under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan after a feasibility study into SA’s desalination plant showed the Liberal Party was gearing up to cut SA’s allocation. 

Greens Spokesperson for Water Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“The feasibility study – released more than a year after it was conducted – shows the Liberals have been gearing up to cut SA’s River Murray allocation permanently.

The Coalition and One Nation have cemented their position as science denialists, having spent Monday badgering some of Australia’s peak scientific bodies over the validity of Great Barrier Reef health findings during a Liberal-called Senate inquiry, the Greens said. 

Co-Deputy Leader of the Australian Greens, Queensland Senator Larissa Waters, said the inquiry is nothing more than a political ploy to attempt to advance the Coalition’s position ahead of the Queensland state election, and further its culture war against science. 

The Greens have welcomed the intervention from NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean who has broken ranks today with the Federal Government over plans to weaken environment laws.  The Greens Environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young called on the Federal Labor Party to rule out supporting the Morrison Government’s fast-track legislation that puts the environment at further risk.

“Minister Matt Kean is to be congratulated for standing up for the environment and calling out his Federal Liberal colleagues,” Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said today.

It’s untenable to leave the National Party in charge of water and a Royal Commission is needed more than ever, after today’s Auditor-General’s report into ‘Watergate’ found the government didn’t even try to achieve value for money of water entitlements and didn’t appropriately manage conflicts of interest, the Greens say.