Labor considering weaker Environment Protection Agency proposal to gain parliament support
Labor has signalled it will water down the powers of its proposed environment watchdog by stripping away its ability to make decisions about development projects.
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Labor has signalled it will water down the powers of its proposed environment watchdog by stripping away its ability to make decisions about development projects.
In a bid to get the bill establishing a national Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through the parliament, the federal government is considering abandoning a plan for the body to independently handle development decisions.
Instead the EPA would be limited to essentially an environment cop on the beat role, ensuring compliance with laws rather than ruling on proposed projects.
Climate groups and the Greens have urged Labor not to weaken the proposed agency, while the Coalition has vowed to scrutinise any new laws to ensure they “deliver on the need for more projects and jobs in Australia.
Coalition environment spokesman Jonno Duniam said Labor’s “hapless and hopeless” record on environmental law “speaks for itself,” criticising the government’s delayed legislation.
“The Environment Minister still hasn’t delivered updated national environmental laws, as was promised,” he said.
“All that is being proposed now is a new bureaucracy in the form of a federal EPA to administer these broken laws.”
Mr Duniam said the Coalition would consider any legislation that comes to the parliament, including scrutinising “how it will deliver on the need for more projects and jobs in Australia”.
“The Labor Government are anti-development, anti-mining and anti-jobs – and this is epitomised by their entire Nature Positive agenda,” he said.
Greens environment spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young said Labor’s back down would be the “final nail in the coffin” for the government’s environmental credibility.
“Yet another cave-in to polluting corporations will accelerate extinction, fuel the climate crisis and destroy critical habitat for endangered species like our precious koala,” she said.
Climate Council head of policy and advocacy Dr Jennifer Rayner said it seemed Australia’s nature would be “left vulnerable with a weak environment protection agency”.
“The Albanese Government must commit to a clear, specific package of nature law reforms – with climate at its heart – and release this before the next election so everyone knows where they stand,” she said.
The criticism of Labor was sparked by comments from Anthony Albanese, who told The West Australian the government was considering making the EPA responsible “compliance only”.
“That enables the legislation to get through the parliament, but we’re talking with not just the Coalition but crossbenchers as well about that to see if we can get agreement,” he said.
Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek on Monday said Labor needed support in the Senate to fix Australia’s environmental laws, which “aren’t working” for business or to protect nature.
“All the way through, we’ve been saying that if there are sensible suggestions made by the Greens or the crossbench or the Liberals or the Nationals to win their support, we’re happy to look at those changes,” she said.
“I’ve said all along that this was going to take common sense and compromise and cooperation, and that’s what we’re prepared to do.”
Business groups have previously raised concerns about giving an EPA powers to decide if development projects go ahead, and had urged Labor to reconsider this aspect of the proposal.
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