Key Queensland land-clearing report ‘out of date’

Queensland’s former chief scientist has warned a key report investigating land clearing rates across the state is ‘outdated’ because Annastacia Palaszczuk’s government sat on its findings.

Tree clearing on the Sunshine Coast.

Queensland’s former chief scientist has warned a key report investigating land clearing rates across the state is “outdated” because Annastacia Palaszczuk’s government has sat on its findings almost a year.

A scientific panel, appointed by the Palaszczuk government, has been probing why 680,000ha of forest were cleared in Queensland in 2018-19 – double the previous year’s total – despite controversial vegetation management laws.

The panel of 10 experts examined the ­factors behind continued deforestation in the Great Barrier Reef catchment area and incentives to help avoid future clearing.

Key findings were given to Palaszczuk government in October 2022, and a final report delivered at the start of the year, but it has not been made public.

Former Queensland chief scientist Hugh Possingham, who served in the role until 2022, said the report’s findings should be made public as soon as possible.

“We started the report in April last year, we briefed (former environment minister Meaghan) Scanlon in October last year … so the government was fully informed by October last year,” he said.

“We issued the final report in January this year and briefed the new minister about a month ago.

“Every month that passes, the report is more out of date.”

Dr Possingham said tree clearing continues to pose a risk to Australia’s delicate ecosystem and marine life, with the destruction of habitat the primary cause of extinctions.

Hugh Possingham is a prominent environmentalist. Picture: Tara Croser

“This government has invested a lot of money, state and federal, into trying to reduce land clearing. Stopping land clearing in the reef catchments will not necessarily save the Great Barrier Reef, but it’s one thing we can actually do,” he said.

“The Great Barrier Reef is double, you’re losing out twice, you’re destroying habitat for biodiversity, but you’re also having an impact on the ecosystem that is hundreds of kilometres away.”

The Australian on Monday revealed clearing rates in the reef catchment are continuing at a steady rate. The state’s latest monitoring report showed 47 per cent of all the state’s clearing happened within the reef catchment area in 2021.

Dr Possingham consulted with 40 other organisations across the agricultural, environment, resources and infrastructure sectors.

Satellite data made available to the panel showed clearing rates have remained flat.

“It has been fairly flat and in the last two years it’s gone down a bit, but not a lot,” Dr Possingham said. “Those land clearing rates are unacceptably high because of the huge impact they have on biodiversity, the Great Barrier Reef and carbon into the atmosphere. So, increasing greenhouse gas emissions and sediments going right into the Great Barrier Reef.”

The expert panel consulted with First Nations, local councils and natural resources management groups to understand the stakeholder perspectives and gain an understanding for solutions to reduce land clearing.

Queensland Conservation Council nature campaigner Natalie Frost backed calls for the panel’s report to be released.

A state government spokesman said the report was still being considered and “will be publicly released in due course”.