The Howard Government today released eight principles to guide its decisions under the EPBC Act on development proposals seeking to “offset” environmental harm.
Federal Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull today gave Gunns the go-ahead for its controversial pulp mill in Tasmania, but with new conditions that would allow maximum effluent concentrations for dioxins and other substances to be altered.
It would be "impractical" to use legislation to deal with illegal logging, says federal forestry minister Eric Abetz in the foreword of a long-awaited Australian government policy to eliminate trade in illegally sourced forest products.
Australia will contribute up to $30 million to a project that aims to protect more than 200,000 hectares of peatland in Indonesia's Kalimantan region, with BHP Billiton also pledging its support.