The Prime Minister's carve-out for the salmon industry means nature is more poorly protected at the end of the Albanese government's three-year term than it was at the start of it, the Australian Conservation Foundation said today.
The government today introduced amendments to the national nature law that sideline the Environment Minister and effectively terminate a review of the impact salmon farming is having on the endangered Maugean Skate and the adjacent World Heritage Area.
The Liberal-National coalition is expected to support the amendments.
"Labor came to government in 2022 promising to strengthen Australia's failing nature laws, but ends the term rushing through a bill to weaken them," said ACF's CEO Kelly O'Shanassy.
"This amendment knowingly risks the extinction of a unique, irreplaceable Australian species. The Maugean skate survived the mass extinction of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, but it may not survive the Albanese government.
"Carve-outs for particular industries are bad news for nature.
"The logging industry's broad exemption to this law has resulted in untold damage to nature over 25 years.
"Peter Dutton's comments in the last week show he is in favour of overriding established protections and processes on behalf of other destructive and polluting industries.
"The carve-out for salmon farming means nature is more poorly protected at the end of the Albanese government's three-year term than it was at the beginning.
"The Prime Minister has failed to deliver the promised strengthening of Australia's nature law, has intervened on behalf of mining and resources interests to shelve a planned national environment protection agency and now he is making the existing law even weaker.
"We welcome Labor's renewed commitment to establish a federal environment protection agency if it wins this year's election – a promise it took to the 2022 election, but did not deliver – and urge all parties hoping to play a part in forming Australia's next government to commit to comprehensive nature law reform in the first 12 months of a new term.
"It's well past time for the PM to start acting in the national interest, rather than the interests of industries that damage nature."
Analysis by ACF shows the Albanese government, which committed to 'no new extinctions', approved the destruction of twice as much threatened species habitat in 2024 as it did in 2023.
