Dredging waste a 'threat to reef'

THE Great Barrier Reef Marine Park could be pressured to accept more than 100 million tonnes of dredging waste.

THE Great Barrier Reef Marine Park could be pressured to accept more than 100 million tonnes of dredging waste under plans to expand coal production and export port facilities in central Queensland, according to local environment groups.

MacKay Conservation Group co-ordinator Patricia Julien said plans to impose a dumping fee of between $5 and $15 per cubic metre for waste would "provide a perverse incentive for a cash-starved Marine Park Authority to accept waste in order to get revenue".

In a letter to federal Environment Minister Tony Burke and Tourism and Resources Minister Martin Ferguson, Ms Julien said the plan would make it very cheap for companies to get rid of unwanted material in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

Ms Julien said the full amount of dredge spoil the authority would be asked to accept in its Marine Park Area was likely to be well beyond 100 million tonnes.

Mr Burke yesterday confirmed that his department had told the Marine Park Authority to raise working capital by imposing a dumping fee.

He said a management charge for tourism operators had been in place for a long time.

"It is ridiculous that tourism operators have to pay a charge to operate in the reef and dredging does not," Mr Burke said.

He said the introduction of a fee did not mean approval to dump dredging spoil would be automatically granted.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said the dumping of dredge was being conducted legally and lawfully "under strict conditions" set by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.

Campaigning in north Queensland, Ms Bligh said if her Labor government were re-elected, it would make "very strong statements" to the federal government about the need to protect the reef.

Marine Park Authority general manager Andrew Skeat said companies wanting to dump waste would have to demonstrate that all alternative options had been explored.

Ms Julien said the proposal assumed that disposal of dredge spoil was a legitimate use of the World Heritage Marine Park and that the only question was how much to charge.

The Marine Park Authority's $45 million annual budget has been under severe pressure because of the high Australian dollar and the global financial crisis.

Sunfish Queensland executive officer Judy Lynne said her organisation would campaign strongly against the dumping proposal.

"The main object of the GBRMPA Act is to provide for the long-term protection and conservation of the environment, biodiversity and heritage values of the Great Barrier Reef Region. It is not to be in the waste management business," she said.

In its report before a World Heritage Committee visit next month, the government acknowledged that a balance was required between the need for ports to remain accessible and the protection of the marine environment and the interests of other stakeholders. It said dredging and placement of dredged material could degrade water quality, change hydrodynamics, smother bottom-dwelling fauna or flora, reduce light penetration and destroy habitat.

Additional reporting: Rosanne Barrett