Adani confident of green light after finch protection plan approved
Queensland’s LNP Opposition leader has used today’s Adani approval to attack the Palaszczuk government.
Adani is confident of getting the last state approval it needs for the construction of its Queensland coal mine, with a company chief declaring “we should be away in weeks”.
Adani cleared one of the major hurdles for its controversial Carmichael coal mine proposal, after the Queensland environment department approved its black-throated finch management plan.
The state’s Coordinator-General Barry Broe confirmed the Queensland Department of Environment and Science had given the green light to Adani’s strategy to protect the endangered bird on its central Queensland mine site.
The first iteration of Adani’s finch management plan — which includes a commitment to create a 33,000ha conservation area on a cattle station owned by the company — was submitted to the state and federal governments in May 2017.
Adani is now waiting for one more approval from the department, for its groundwater management plan. The department will make a decision by June 13, but is waiting for advice from the CSIRO and Geosciences Australia.
Liberal National Party Opposition leader Deb Frecklington used the approval of the finch plan to attack the Palaszczuk Labor government.
“Annastacia Palaszczuk’s bitterly divided government has done all it can to stop new mines and destroy jobs in the resources industry but I am glad common sense is prevailing in this case,” Ms Frecklington said.
“Adani has cleared every major environmental hurdle for the past eight years and finally there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
“Make no mistake, this is bigger than just the Adani project. The Palaszczuk Labor Government’s anti-regions, anti-jobs and anti-resources agenda will continue to hurt Queensland.”
The green movement reacted angrily to the decision, warning Adani’s Galilee Basin mine would “devastate critical habitat for this endangered bird”.
Australian Conservation Foundation campaigner Christian Slattery said the finch had already lost 88 per cent of its historical range.
“The area where Adani wants to dig the Carmichael mine is home to the largest known population of black-throated finches and some of the best remaining habitat,” Mr Slattery said.
“The black-throated finch is already endangered and this decision by the Queensland government, which comes after months of pressure and coercion by Adani and the mining lobby, might have sealed its fate.”
Adani Australia chief executive Lucas Dow expressed optimism about an imminent resumption of construction work.
He said the company was already working with contractors and suppliers to hit the ground running, should the department also sign off on the groundwater plan. “Ultimately, all things boding well, we should be away in weeks,” he told reporters.
He said Adani modified its finch management plan to incorporate departmental demands, even though it didn’t think some of them were really necessary to protect the species.
“Whilst we didn’t believe they were required in terms of meeting our obligations, in the interests of finalising the plan we incorporated elements that included, for example, changing the grazing density, adjusting some of the population survey methodologies and some of the research plans.”
Mr Dow did not answer when repeatedly asked how many of the birds live on the mine site, which covers a large swathe of its best remaining habitat. But he said Adani had agreed to conduct population studies and implement monitoring systems to track how the species is doing over time. Mr Dow also sought to explain why fewer jobs are now on the cards from the mine, citing Adani’s decision to downsize the project.
“We’ll see 1500 jobs created on the rail and mine project and a further 6750 indirect jobs. We’re talking about 8250 jobs created through the ramp-up and construction of the project that currently don’t exist in Queensland.”
Adani has been pressing for the approvals from the department for months and last week Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk finally gave in to demands that she intervene, ordering high-level talks between the company, the department and the state’s Co-ordinator-General.
Ms Palaszczuk had said federal Labor’s drubbing in regional Queensland at the recent election — partly blamed on the state government’s stalling on Adani and an internal revolt by her regional MPs — delivered a “wake-up call” and prompted her to declare she was “fed up” with her own department’s processes.
If the Indian mining conglomerate gets the June 13 green light, it says it will immediately begin construction on its $2bn coal mine and rail project in the nascent Galilee Basin, in central Queensland.
Mr Broe has also set out a series of deadlines for other project milestones, such as a license to build and operate a rail line, for later in the year.
A spokesman for Queensland’s environment department said the Carmichael mine site was Australia’s most significant population of the endangered black-throated finch. The department approved the plan after Adani made extra concessions to protect the finch, the spokesman said.
“Assessment of this plan has been a rigorous process, informed by the best available science,” the spokesman said.
“DES has met regularly with Adani to ensure that the plan is robust and is well-placed to deliver the best outcomes for the protection of the black-throated finch.
“This process has included an independent expert panel review of a previous version of the plan submitted in December 2018.”
“The additional undertakings that Adani has committed to have strengthened the plan and are important to protect this endangered species.
The department said Adani had agreed to:
• Establish enhanced understanding of the black-throated finch in the project area, including undertaking appropriate population studies,
• Establish appropriate monitoring protocols that will allow for an analysis of the black-throated finch population in the project area over time, and
• Manage the Ten Mile Bore area and surrounds in a manner that protects the black-throated finch, including a commitment to a low-grazing regime in that area.
The department also said it was satisfied Adani would employ properly qualified ecologists to conduct the surveys and ongoing monitoring of the finch.
Additional reporting: AAP
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