New environment minister Murray Watt told to clean up department

Anthony Albanese confirmed that Tanya Plibersek would be dumped from the environment portfolio after a turbulent three-year tenure.

Anthony Albanese and Tanya Plibersek in Perth. Picture: Jason Edwards / NewsWire

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The nation’s miners are urging new environment minister Murray Watt to overhaul his department and bring into line bureaucrats obsessed with green tape, ahead of major decisions on projects including the North West Shelf and a looming revamp of federal environmental legislation.

Anthony Albanese on Monday confirmed that Tanya Plibersek would be dumped from the environment portfolio after a turbulent three-year tenure.

Peak bodies from across the resources sector welcomed the news of Senator Watt’s appointment, although the farming industry – still scarred by his decision to end live sheep export during his time as agriculture minister – sounded a note of caution.

Environmental groups were also quick to encourage Mr Watt to push ahead with the legislative agenda first laid out by Ms Plibersek but repeatedly killed off by the Prime Minister in the lead up to the election.

Multiple sources from across the mining industry said they expected that Senator Watt’s Queensland origins meant he would have a better handle on the significance of the sector to the national economy. Ms Plibersek’s perceived frosty relationship with the Prime Minister had also fed concerns in the industry that she could make rogue decisions in the environment portfolio with little concern for the damage they could do for the government.

Senator Watt arrives in the portfolio with a reputation as the Prime Minister’s problem solver, having previously been moved from agriculture to the employment and workplace relations portfolios in last year’s reshuffle.

New Environment Minister Murray Watt. Picture: NewsWire / John Gass

One senior source from the mining industry, who did not want to be named, said they would encourage Senator Watt to look closely at the management of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, arguing that Ms Plibersek had been “let down terribly” by the bureaucrats during her time in the role.

Ms Plibersek signed off on the contentious decision to block goldminer Regis Resources from developing its McPhillamys gold mine in NSW due to disputed concerns about the impact of a proposed tailings dam on Indigenous heritage. Ms Pliberek was also central in proposed Nature Positive law reforms that were quashed not once but twice by Mr Albanese amid strong opposition from both the resources sector and WA Premier Roger Cook.

Ms Plibersek had also twice deferred a decision on whether to allow Woodside Energy to extend the life of its North West Shelf gas plant to 2070.

Senator Watt will also have to take the reins on the Nature Positive reform process.

Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA chief executive Rebecca Tomkinson noted that Mr Albanese had repeatedly committed to “going back to the drawing board on environmental law reform” during the campaign and said her organisation looked forward to engaging closely in that process.

“CME supports environmental law reform that achieves the dual objective of delivering improved outcomes for Australia’s unique environment and improving the efficiency of assessment processes,” she said.

A decision on Woodside’s North West Shelf project now looms as the first major test for Senator Watt.

The North West Shelf became a political flashpoint during the election campaign, as objections to the project by the Greens and teals fuelled fears that it could become a bargaining chip in a minority government.

Woodside and WA’s Environmental Protection Authority on Monday confirmed that the oil and gas company had changed part of its project plans to ensure that its development no longer overlapped with sensitive shallow water habitats at Scott Reef and had relocated drilling units away from green turtle habitats.

A spokeswoman for Woodside said the company was looking forward to working with Senator Watt “as he takes on the critical role of ensuring development in Australia is conducted responsibly and sustainably”.

“In particular, we are keen to work with Senator Watt to secure approval for the North West Shelf to continue operations beyond 2030,” the Woodside spokeswoman said.

Sandra Van Der Gaag at Woodside’s Karratha gas plant. Picture: Woodside

“Timely approval of the North West Shelf Extension is critical to ensure this nationally significant asset continues to support thousands of direct and indirect jobs, provide billions of dollars in taxes and royalties, and deliver future gas supply to Western Australian businesses and homes.”

The Minerals Council of Australia said it was ready to work with the new minister on supporting the government’s “economic and environmental ambitions”.

“We urge a re-elected Albanese government to place investment at the heart of its economic growth strategy, by creating the right conditions to attract the capital needed not only in our sector, but across the broader economy,” the MCA said.

The farming lobby, however, was less confident, given Senator Watt’s record as agriculture minister.

Trevor Whittington, the chief executive of the WA Farmers Federation, said Senator Watt’s record in agriculture meant his appointment to the environment portfolio was “no great leap forward”.

“Replacing Plibersek with Watt is like swapping poison for venom – different minister, same lethal agenda for regional Australia,” he said.

He said Senator Watt had been a “disaster” as agriculture minister and that the mining industry should be worried.

“Watt doesn’t represent the bush, he represents the next rung on the Labor ladder of ambition and he’s willing to trample rural industries to climb it,” Mr Whittington said.

“Ambitious, aggressive, and out of touch – Murray Watt is no friend of the farmer, and I predict soon he won’t be any friend of the miners.”

Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive Kelly O’Shanassy said the organisation was looking forward to working with Senator Watt on the “critical task” of reforming national nature laws.

“The Albanese government went to the 2022 election promising thorough reform of the law. That promise remains unfulfilled. It’s time to get on with the job,” she said.

“There can be no more delays, caving to lobby groups and carving out industries: the Albanese government must fix Australia’s nature laws in the first year of this term of parliament.”

Matt Roberts, the executive director of the Conservation Council of WA, said the senator should look closely at the results of the recent election when weighing up the North West Shelf decision, given it had been “thoroughly rejected by the WA electorate”.

“In two key WA seats, Curtin and Fremantle, independent candidates won significant swings towards them despite massive scare campaigns from industry about the North West Shelf. Meanwhile, Peter Dutton, the biggest backer of the North West Shelf who irresponsibly promised to fast-track the approval process if elected, comprehensively lost the election and his own seat,” Mr Roberts said.

“The re-elected Albanese government has a mandate to act on climate and to protect nature.”

The Indigenous woman who has pushing for three years for Ms Plibersek to take action over the North West Shelf, Raelene Cooper, said the North West Shelf was the biggest environmental decision at present.

“The irreversible, irreplaceable damage to our rock art has been ongoing through this period, with multiple projects currently under construction at Woodside’s Burrup Hub, including the Perdaman fertiliser plant flattening Murujuga’s rock art engravings,” Ms Cooper said.

“The very first thing the new minister needs to do is decide whether to stop Woodside continuing to destroy our sacred Murujuga rock art with their North West Shelf gas export facility.”

Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Michaelia Cash, said Ms Plibersek had delayed her decision on the North West Shelf for political reasons and it was now time for Senator Watt to make a decision quickly.

“Murray Watt has let Western Australia down in the past by killing the live sheep export industry,’’ she said.

“He should not do more damage to Western Australia by delaying this decision any further.”