The Fight for the Reef campaign Federal Election Scorecard Policies. 23 May 2016

Transcription

1 The Fight for the Reef campaign Federal Election Scorecard Policies 23 May 2016

2 1. Laws to stop farm pollution flowing into Great Barrier Reef waters Regulate a cap on farm pollution flowing into Great Barrier Reef waters, with staged cap reductions to achieve the clean water targets in the Reef 2050 Plan Polluted run-off is one of the key reasons we have lost half the Great Barrier Reef s coral cover. Catchment pollution feeds crown of thorn starfish outbreaks, and make corals more vulnerable to coral bleaching. The Australian Government has committed to the World Heritage Committee to achieve Reef safe water quality by 2025 this includes farm pollution cuts of up to 80%. Action and investment will need to be demonstrated by the end of 2016, for Australia to avoid risking being brought back to the next World Heritage Committee meeting in 2017, and to avoid risking an in danger listing in We know that precision farm practices can cut pollution whilst boosting profits. With the right mix of regulations and incentives, widespread uptake of these Reef safe practices can help give the GBR the clean water it needs to rebuild its coral gardens. Successive governments have set pollution reduction targets and invested in programs to help farmers adopt cleaner, more efficient practices. However, as the Queensland Auditor-General recently found, these actions are failing programs are fragmented, progress slow, and targets unlikely to be achieved. To deliver clean water for the Reef, the next Australian government must place a legal cap on farm pollution entering the Reef. Each business should be given a pollution limit based on current best practice which can be reduced in stages to meet the 2025 water quality targets. Meeting these targets is critical if we are to avoid the next Crown of Thorns Starfish outbreak, and give the Reef the best chance of recovery from coral bleaching. A legal cap on pollution entering the Reef is the only mechanism that can provide certainty that the targets will be met. The government can support agricultural enterprises to meet this challenge by providing financial assistance to farmers to adopt profitable, low-polluting practices, as described in the next section of this policy package. The next Australian Government can meet its commitment to the World Heritage Committee to deliver clean water for the Great Barrier Reef by: Legislating a cap on pollution entering Reef water and reducing it over time to achieve clean water targets in the Reef 2050 Plan Requiring the Queensland Government to implement actions to meet the legal cap 2

3 2. A multi-billion dollar fund for better farm management and catchment repair to stop Reef pollution Establish a multi-billion dollar fund to fast-track better farm management and catchment repair to achieve the clean water targets in the Reef 2050 Plan The Great Barrier Reef is not only an environmental wonder but a key economic asset that delivers jobs and regional economic growth. A major clean water investment package will not only restore the Reef s health but will bring significant economic benefits to the agricultural and tourism industries, and the communities that rely on them. As discussed above, under the Reef 2050 Plan the Queensland and Australian Governments have committed to bold new pollution targets to deliver the clean water the Reef needs to restore its health including farm pollution cuts of up to 80%. However, the Plan does not set out the new programs and investment needed to achieve these targets. The World Heritage Committee recognised the new pollution targets in its 2015 decision but said that finalising an investment framework is an essential requirement for the effective implementation of the 2050 (Plan) that should be established as a matter of priority. The Reef Natural Resource Management organisations, the people who deliver pollution cutting programs, have modelled that it will take around $2 billion to reach the 2025 clean water targets. However, in a new paper released in May experts from James Cook University estimate the cost may be as high as $10 billion over ten years. The Queensland Reef Water Quality Taskforce is currently making a more detailed assessment of the level of investment required, and their results will be available in the next few weeks. A multi-billion dollar investment package is needed to support agricultural enterprises to adopt precision farm practices that can cut pollution whilst boosting profits. Widespread uptake of Reef safe practices can help give the GBR the clean water it needs to rebuild its coral gardens. The investment package must also fund much needed catchment repair such as restoration of wetlands and riparian forests, and rehabilitation of streambanks and gullies which are essential to halt soil erosion and filter out pollutants before they reach the Reef. The next Australian Government can meet its commitment to the World Heritage Committee to deliver clean water for the Great Barrier Reef by: Establishing a multi-billion dollar fund to meet the clean water targets committed to in the Reef 2050 Plan Targeting these funds to fast-track improved agricultural practice and innovation, as well as transformational repair of the catchment 3

4 3. A strong champion for the Reef Create a stronger, better resourced, independent Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority The Australian Government has direct responsibility for managing the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, in cooperation with Queensland. The primary objective of the Commonwealth Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act is to ensure the long-term protection and conservation of the environment, biodiversity and heritage values of the Great Barrier Reef Region. Sadly the scale of the problems facing the Great Barrier Reef has outgrown the current government agencies and structures ability to achieve this objective. Australian and Queensland Governments have committed to the Reef 2050 Plan to address these threats, but without a stronger, independent and better resourced Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) to lead implementation, its objectives also won t be met. To meet these challenges, GBRMPA should have the following roles, powers and resources: 1. Independence: Governed by an independent chair and an expertise based board of international stature who are accountable for GBRMPA s performance under law and report direct to the Commonwealth and Queensland Parliaments. 2. Strong: Ensure GBRMPA has approval powers for all developments and activities that are likely to have a significant impact on World Heritage values of the GBR Region, either separately or cumulatively when considered with other existing or likely pressures. 3. Leadership: As the government champion for the Great Barrier Reef, GBRMPA should be given responsibility to lead and coordinate the implementation of the Reef 2050 Long Term Sustainability Plan and the associated investment strategy. 4. Smarter Government investment: To enable GBRMPA to fulfil its existing and new responsibilities, the Authority s annual budget should be increased by up to $20 million over the forward estimates. Most current funding for Reef programs in the federal Department of Environment should be reallocated to GBRMPA in line with the change in roles and responsibilities of the two agencies. Government subsidies for port development should be ruled out. 5. On-ground: To better protect target and threatened species such as turtle and dugong, expand commercial fishing vessel tracking and increase resourcing and effectiveness of the field management, permitting and compliance programs in order to eradicate the current high levels of non-compliance with GBR marine park regulations. 6. Innovative: Establish a GBR research strategy by 2017 that facilitates coordination and collaboration between the major GBR research institutions, management agencies and investment funds so that the critical research required to underpin effective management of the GBR and adjacent coastal ecosystems is delivered. 7. Transparent and accountable: Enhance the independence and credibility of the 2019 GBR Outlook Report given its crucial role for deliberations by the World Heritage Committee in 2019/2020. GBRMPA should be responsible for reporting on the effectiveness of all major Reef management programs. 4

5 4. Stop damaging industrial developments on the Reef coast, like Abbot Point Strengthen laws to prevent damaging industrial developments on the Reef coast and rule out subsidies for port development and related infrastructure. Over the past three years, the high degree of community concern about the industrialisation of the Great Barrier Reef coastline led to a ban on most capital dredge spoil disposal by the federal and Queensland governments, while Queensland has restricted industrial port expansion to four existing ports. The Queensland Government has also ruled out taxpayer funding for dredging and port expansion at Abbot Point or the Port of Cairns. The GBR World Heritage Area is jointly managed by the Queensland and Commonwealth Governments. The Commonwealth has legal powers over dredging, dredge spoil disposal, and port development that occurs in Commonwealth waters, or that are likely to have a significant impact on World Heritage values. The next Australian government should: 1. Rule out any federal government investment, including via the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility, the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund and the Future Fund, in port expansions, capital dredging or related projects that impact the GBR World Heritage Area. 2. As discussed in policy #3 above, ensure GBRMPA has approval powers for all developments and activities that are likely to have a significant impact on World Heritage values of the GBR Region, either separately or cumulatively when considered with other existing or likely pressures 5

6 5. Stop illegal fishing and protect turtles and dugongs Strengthen enforcement and monitoring of Marine Park zoning laws to stop illegal fishing and prevent dugongs and turtles drowning in fishing nets The 2014 Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report reported that illegal fishing and poaching, and incidental catch of species of conservation concern (such as dugong and inshore dolphins) pose a Very High risk to the Reef. The values of the Commonwealth Great Barrier Reef Marine Park are protected through a zoning system which excludes high-impact activities, like commercial fishing, from sensitive areas, while allowing a wide variety of activities in the largest general use zone. Unfortunately, the number of breaches of these zoning rules is unacceptably high. Illegal fishing has devastating impacts on stocks of target fish species and the capture of threatened species such as dugongs, inshore dolphins and sea turtles. The vast size of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park requires new innovative technological interventions to help improve commercial fisheries compliance rates and free up on-water compliance patrol boats to focus on recreational boating activities. Next generation electronic vessel tracking devices cost-effectively level the playing field for commercial fishers by ensuring all fishing operations are conducted in accordance with the Marine Park zoning regulations and fisheries closures. 1. Ensure that all primary commercial fishing vessels and tender vessels operating in the GBR Region are required to have electronic vessel tracking devices 2. As discussed in policy #3 above, increase resourcing and effectiveness of the field management, permitting and compliance programs in order to eradicate the current high levels of non-compliance with GBR marine park regulations. 6

7 6. Deliver a rapid shift to renewable energy and end fossil fuel subsidies Commitment and a plan for 100% renewable electricity by 2035 and end fossil fuel subsidies to rapidly reduce global warming The Great Barrier Reef is experiencing its worst ever coral bleaching event, caused by rising sea temperatures driven by global warming. Extensive aerial and underwater surveys have revealed that 93% of the Reef has been affected. It s a mixed picture of very severe, moderate and minor damage that changes dramatically from north to south along the 2300km length of the Reef. The bleaching is extreme in the 1000km region north of Port Douglas all the way up to the northern Torres Strait between Australia and Papua New Guinea. This is the most remote part of the Reef, and its remoteness has protected it from most human pressures: but not global warming. North of Port Douglas, scientists are already measuring an average of close to 50% mortality of bleached corals. At some reefs, the final death toll is likely to exceed 90%. The future of Australia s most famous natural icon is imperiled, along with the 69,000 jobs along the Reef coastline that depend on a healthy Reef, and the $6 billion that the Reef generates each year. The good news is that Australia can be a major benefactor of strong action to tackle global warming. Australia can build a cleaner, healthier, better future by cutting carbon pollution and harnessing technologies that exist today, thereby securing the future of the one of the 7 natural wonders of the world and its coastal communities. 1. Commit to a target of 100% renewable electricity by Commit to targets of at least 50% of total renewable energy (electricity, transport, and industrial process) by 2030 and 100% before Implement enabling policies for renewable energy growth such as: expanding the Renewable Energy Target (RET) to 100% out to 2035; supporting distributed power generation by households and businesses; and kick-starting community renewable power projects. 3. Phase out fossil fuel subsidies including the non-agriculture fuel tax rebate, fuel rebate for airlines, and statutory cap on accelerated depreciation for oil and gas companies. 5. Transition out coal fired power plants before Many of our coal-fired power plants are nearing the end of their natural life but lack incentive to close. A measured transition to close old inefficient coal power stations and facilitate the transition of workers and regional communities and could include a mix of market mechanism for regulated closure and emissions performance standards. 7