Government kicks off race to tap State’s wild places

THE official call for new tourism ideas in Tasmania’s nat­ional parks and World Heritage Areas will begin today.

Minister Matthew Groom speaks. Proto-type of one of the Three Capes Walks huts being built at Island Workshop in Electrona.

THE official call for new tourism ideas in Tasmania’s nat­ional parks and World Heritage Areas will begin today.

As revealed by the Mercury last month, Environment, Parks and Heritage Minister Matthew Groom wants to turn Tasmania into the international capital of environmental tourism.

LIBERALS’ GREEN LIGHT FOR NATIONAL PARK DEVELOPMENT

An advertising campaign has begun today calling for expressions of interest in Tasmania’s wild places. The campaign is aimed at attracting the interest of national and international investors.

Tourism Industry Council Tasmania chief executive Luke Martin predicted there would be considerable private sector interest in the tourism project.

“The hope is that the process will bring forward ideas that we already know are being discussed and considered,’’ he said.

“This is all about breaking a very poor investment cycle in regional areas.”

For six months, the private sector will be able to put forward proposals to be assessed by the new office of the Co-ordinator General.

The assessment will look at the appropriateness of the proposal, the qualifications of the proponents and the developer’s ability to build and finance the project.

In the second stage, the Government will work with the developers as a facilitator of the proposal through the app­roval processes.

The State Government was not commenting on the advertisements last night.

But in an exclusive recent interview, Mr Groom said the policy represented a “mindset shift” under the Government.

“What we want to do through this expressions of interest process is to tap into the creativity of the private sector, to tap into the capital of the private sector, to find opportunity for investment in tourism offerings and appropriate and sensible infrastructure to facilitate the tourism opportunity that is genuinely world class,” he said.

“The new Government is about recognising our World Heritage areas and national parks as an asset. It is one of the greatest ass­ets we have.”

The process has come under fire from the Greens who say it will open the state’s wild places up to unnecessary developments.