E&OE….
Topics: Great Barrier Reef
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
Environment Minister Greg Hunt has been lobbying very hard for this result, and he joins us now from Brisbane. Good morning to you Minister.
GREG HUNT:
Good morning Deb.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
How relieved are you at this result, because obviously it would have been devastating to be put on this list.
GREG HUNT:
Look, I'm delighted at the result which has come down overnight. What's happened is that UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has recommended that the reef not be listed as ‘in danger’. It has gone a lot further and removed any reference to ‘in danger’ and it's actually praised Australia's management of the Great Barrier Reef.
The decision to end dredge disposal for 100 years of practice in the Marine Park, a long term plan and a quarter of a billion dollars of additional investment. So it's a really good outcome for the reef and a fantastic outcome for Australia.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
But really now the hard part does begin for you and for the Queensland Government, because we've got two years to report back to ensure that we do stay off the list. We're effectively on probation here aren't we?
GREG HUNT:
No. With respect, that's completely wrong. We are back to the ordinary course of five year reports, which every World Heritage property has. In two years we propose that we put in just a brief update. But the reef has been given a tremendous endorsement.
We are- The world's greatest reef, the largest reef the most majestic reef and the world's best managed reef. What's happened here is all reference to ‘in danger’ is gone, back to an ordinary five year reporting cycle. The most important thing is now we get on with the task of reducing sediment, reducing nitrogen, killing off the crown of thorns, the practical action that helps coral thrive and flourish.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
Was the threat of being put on this list in the first place the wakeup call that we needed?
GREG HUNT:
Well, the reef went onto the watch list in 2011 under the ALP, it came off in 2015 under us. We did actually genuinely use this as an opportunity to make changes which might not otherwise have been possible. The once-in-a-century ban on dredge disposal in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park area went around the world.
When we announced it in front of 5000 people at the World Parks Congress in November the world cheered, the audience cheered and that was the moment I think when things turned around, so this scrutiny has been valuable, it has helped us and somebody such as myself make and push through decisions and funding which might not have been possible. So it's been a very valuable process.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
It's not all good news in the report though, because it does say that the outlook for the reef is poor, and that it's worsened since 2009 and it is expected to further deteriorate. What about future development and industry in the area? How can the health of the reef be guaranteed if we still have a growing coal and gas industry off Queensland?
GREG HUNT:
Look that is a very important question and when we came in, I inherited and opened the books to discover there were five massive dredge disposal plans for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park area, which would amaze many people, and it did me.
All of those five – all of those five disposal plans are over. We went after them, we made sure they were terminated in terms of dredge disposal and then went further to put in place, and I signed off on a law only a few weeks ago which guaranteed forever that there will never be significant dredge disposal in the Marine Park and I think this is really an important moment in Australian reef management.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
Should we see all port development cease?
GREG HUNT:
Well these are of course, in many cases, hundred year old ports and so you'd be closing down Cairns and Townsville. You’d be closing down Gladstone…
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
What about new developments though?
GREG HUNT:
Well I think the Queensland Government has made sure that there are no new port proposals in terms of new significant ports that will be developed. It's something we worked on with successive Governments, so I'm pretty confident that it's not just the reputation of the reef which has been protected, defended, on which we've been successful, but much more importantly it's the reef itself, this majestic wonder of the world.
We're doing things that no other country is doing and Australians should be pretty proud, but it's everybody's task, and we've now set down a plan out to 2050. We've put in place a decade's funding and we've increase the water quality funding and put in place the law which bans that dredge disposal forever.
DEBORAH KNIGHT:
Yeah, well let's hope that good work can continue because as you say it's a resource that we need to protect for future generations. Greg Hunt, thanks so much for your time this morning.
GREG HUNT:
Thanks Deb.
(ENDS)