The "notoriously slow" process for developing National Environmental Protection Measures shows states and territories can't be relied on to quickly adopt and enforce mandatory EPBC standards, says a new Australian Conservation Foundation report.
Businessman-activist Geoff Cousins and ACF chief executive Kelly O'Shannassy say securing public support is the key to rapidly steering new projects through approval processes, not a one-stop-shop.
The ultimate legacy of the mining industry's resistance to the carbon price might be a much more stringent and heavy-handed regulatory regime, says Australian Conservation Foundation CEO Don Henry.
A summit meeting of environment groups today urged business to 'reconsider its position' on devolving EPBC approval powers to state governments, warning of widespread opposition, more court cases and reputational damage.
Now that Xstrata has abandoned its plans for a coal export terminal on Balaclava Island in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, the island's zoning should be changed to prevent other development, says WWF.
The Newman Government's proposed changes to land clearing laws would place at risk more than 2 million hectares of mature and regrowth bushland, according to a new WWF study.
The Montara oil spill highlighted the dangers of leaving states and territories responsible for nationally significant environmental matters, according to WWF's Gilly Llewellyn, who maintains there are ways to make the EPBC process work better for business without devolving approval powers.
Australian companies sourcing paper from Indonesia-based Asia Pulp and Paper are buying from a company destroying swathes of Sumatra's peat swamp forests, according to a Greenpeace report released today.