THE recent decision by UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee not to place Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef on the “in danger” list, was hailed as an uncommon win for common sense said Member for Hinchinbrook Andrew Cripps.
Mr Cripps said despite the inflammatory scaremongering and doomsday rhetoric of the extreme Green movement, which tried to demonise farmers and other job creating industries in Queensland, hard science had prevailed.
“The former LNP Government did more than any previous administration in Queensland to protect the Great Barrier Reef through practical initiatives and proper planning across a range of portfolios,” Mr Cripps said.
“The fact is the Reef was put on the ‘watch’ list under State and Federal Labor Governments in 2011,” he said.
“Since then, the hard work of State and Federal LNP Governments has seen it avoid an ‘in danger’ listing.”
Mr Cripps said it was the LNP that drafted and developed Reef Plan 2050, was investing $35 million each year to improve water quality and stumped up $1 million to help control excessive numbers of the crown-of-thorns starfish.
“It was the LNP that introduced the toughest laws ever to protect the Great Barrier Reef by significantly increasing penalties for causing serious environmental harm and developed the Queensland Ports Strategy.
“In contrast, Labor left office in Queensland in 2012 having approved a massive 38 million cubic metre at sea dredge spoil disposal plan at Abbot Point and imposing mountains of meaningless paperwork on farmers.
“For Labor to claim credit for the Reef not being listed as ‘in danger’ is a complete joke - they, along with the extreme green movement, should be embarrassed about their hysterical and baseless claims.
“Fast-forward to 2015 and all Labor can do is appoint yet another committee to work out what their plan is going to be to ‘save’ the Reef.
“The Reef is not in danger and the alarmists have been left red faced - it’s a great win for Queensland.”
