Craig Thomson (Dobell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support the Protection of the Sea Legislation Amendment Bill 2008. The purpose of this bill is to implement the protocol of 2003 to the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage—the supplementary fund protocol—and to introduce amendments to the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983, the MARPOL amendments, and amendments relating to shipping and maritime navigation levies.

Australia is party to two conventions which establish the international liability and compensation regime for pollution damage resulting from spills of oil from oil tankers: the International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage 1992, or the civil liability convention, and the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage 1992, or the 1992 fund convention. These conventions establish a two-tier scheme to provide compensation for loss or damage resulting from a spill of oil from an oil tanker.

The burden of compensating victims for oil spills is shared in the first instance between the shipowners and their insurers. If the moneys available are insufficient, the outstanding compensation is provided by the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds, the IOPC Funds, which are financed by levies on cargo owners—that is, the oil-receiving identities. Under this two-tier scheme, the maximum amount of compensation available for a single incident involving spills of oil from an oil tanker is 203 million special drawing rights, which is approximately $350 million. The SDR is a unit of account defined by the International Monetary Fund. The value of the SDR varies from day to day in accordance with changes in currency.

Following a number of high-profile, high-impact tanker incidents, including one off the coast of Japan in 1997, the Erika off the coast of France in 1999 and the Prestige off the coast of Spain in 2002, the maximum compensation afforded by these two conventions has proved to be insufficient to provide full compensation for all claimants. In Australia, given our extensive coastline and strong environmental perspective, the compensation available under the IOPC Funds may not cover a major incident such as those experienced by Japan, France or Spain.

As a result, the supplementary fund protocol was adopted in 2003 by the International Maritime Organisation, the IMO, to create a further source of funds for compensation in the event of pollution damage caused by an oil spill from an oil tanker. The supplementary fund protocol entered into force internationally on 3 March 2005. The supplementary fund protocol creates a third tier of compensation for pollution damage resulting from spills of oil from an oil tanker, so that the maximum amount payable increases to up to 750 million SDRs, which is approximately A$1.3 billion per incident. The supplementary fund will be financed through levies on public or private entities in receipt of more than 150,000 tonnes of contributing oil per year in contracting states. Levies for the supplementary fund will be collected after an oil spill has occurred and after the first two tiers of compensation are exhausted. The supplementary fund protocol does not impose additional costs on the shipping industry, as the cost is borne by the oil-importing entities.

Australia’s accession to the supplementary fund protocol will ensure that compensation to Australian victims following an oil spill from an oil tanker is maximised and that adequate financial resources are provided for clean-up and restoration of Australia’s marine environment. This is absolutely vital for a country like Australia with such a vast and expansive coastline. We are all familiar with the story of the Pasha Bulker, the huge coal carrier which ran aground in Newcastle during severe weather in May last year and caused a major spectacle in that city for several weeks. While the Pasha Bulker was not an oil tanker, that ship had on board 760 tonnes of fuel oil and smaller quantities of diesel and other lubricating oils to operate its machinery. Luckily, in the case of the Pasha Bulker, time was on the side of salvage crews, who, despite some damage to the ship’s hull, were able to empty most of the fuel oil and other potential pollutants from the vessel before spillages occurred at Nobbys Beach.

Members of this House may take issue with my saying that the seat of Dobell has the most beautiful beaches in the whole of Australia. For that reason this bill is absolutely vital—to make sure that these pristine beaches, which stand out amongst many great beaches in Australia, are protected. In the future we may not be able to avert a major environmental disaster so easily. From Newcastle, which is just to the north of the seat of Dobell, stretching south along the coastline right through my electorate, there is a constant and long queue of ships waiting to off-load their cargo. We often see up to 48 vessels waiting along the coastline in front of my electorate. These vessels carry similar quantities of bunker oils to that of the Pasha Bulker. The likelihood of other weather events, accidents or equipment failures aboard the many coal vessels, oil tankers or general cargo ships that ply the Central Coast waters each year along the coastline of Dobell and its neighbouring electorates mean that we are potentially at risk of major maritime oil spills.

Increasing importance is being placed on the future of Dobell as a tourist destination. From beautiful Wamberal in the south, through to Forresters Beach, Shelley Beach, Toowoon Bay and Soldiers Beach in the north, our pristine beaches are the area’s jewels and Australia’s jewels in terms of beaches. An incident involving an oil spillage or something similar anywhere along the beautiful coastline would be disastrous for the lifestyle and economy of my electorate in terms of the effect it would have on tourism. The seat of Dobell has almost twice the national level of unemployment, and tourism is one industry that provides vital employment for people living within the electorate. The impact economically of an oil spill on the tourism industry in Dobell cannot be overstated.

I must stress that my constituents take their lifestyles very seriously. Not only do we take pride in some of Australia’s best beaches, with a healthy level of participation in ocean swimming and surf-lifesaving; we also have one of the country’s highest per capita rates of recreational fishing. Our waters need protection. Our surf clubs on the Central Coast are part of the Dobell culture. Almost all kids who grow up on the Central Coast join a surf-lifesaving club at some stage and participate in the nippers and other activities there. Surf-lifesaving for people who live in my electorate is far more than a sporting activity. It is an activity that brings together and binds our community and provides support for each other in hard times and in good times. If we were to have oil spills that were in some way to threaten the functionality of these surf clubs, that would have a disastrous social impact on people who live in my electorate. The Central Coast has had a proud record in surf-lifesaving. The advent of RVs, which you now see at most surf beaches around Australia, were primarily pioneered at Soldiers Beach at Norah Head in my electorate. Surf-lifesaving has played a very important role in the development of the sense of community that we have on the Central Coast.

I can let the House know that, as a member of Surf Life Saving Australia who actively and regularly patrols beaches, I can attest firsthand to the important role that surf-lifesaving plays in the lives of people who live on the Central Coast and for the many hundreds of thousands of tourists who come to the Central Coast to enjoy the best beaches in Australia.

The Rudd government has already embarked on several initiatives to improve and protect the environment. In my electorate, this includes $20 million for the Tuggerah Lakes Estuary Management Plan, which aims to clean up the lakes system and restore it to the environmental showpiece status that it deserves. Thousands of Central Coast residents live around the lakes and use them for recreational purposes on a daily basis. Visitors from both within Australia and overseas regularly benefit from holidays by the lakes at such popular destinations as The Entrance—and, of course, it is named The Entrance because that is where the Tuggerah Lakes meet the ocean. That shows the vulnerability of the lakes system to an oil spillage, should one occur.

Commercial fishermen draw some of their livelihood from the lakes, and the area is known for its sweet-tasting school prawns in particular, which even in these times of record inflation can be bought for about $14 a kilo by the lakes’ edge. Areas of the Tuggerah Lakes system are natural habitats for hundreds of species of migratory birds, some of them threatened. Substantial areas of bush reserve, which contain a vast variety of flora and fauna, interface with Tuggerah Lakes and its smaller surrounding waterways. Much of the Tuggerah Lakes Estuary Management Plan—which, as I said, the Rudd government has contributed $20 million to over the next five years to ensure that the lakes are returned to a pristine condition—focuses on ensuring that the run-off and the flow from other waterways into the lakes are clean. Restoring the lakes system is a vital program for the region’s natural environment and tourism industry. The federal government is working closely with Wyong Shire Council to ensure that this aim is met.

The estuary management plan is also an important project for the constituents of Dobell, many of whom at both the council and the community level have a strong involvement in the process and take great pride in the natural features of our lakes system. We have many volunteer organisations that regularly participate and assist in ensuring that our lakes system is kept in good condition, and the $20 million from the Rudd government will help to ensure that the lakes system is restored to the pristine condition that we know it should be in.

The environment is a priority on the Central Coast and the federal government has recognised this. The Rudd government chose to highlight its commitment to the environment with the launching of the $100 million Caring for our Coasts plan by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Peter Garrett, at North Entrance, an area that is itself facing tough coastal erosion issues. In fact, both at Wamberal in the south of the electorate and at Norah Head in the north we have houses that have been threatened by coastal erosion. Again the federal government will work closely with the local council and with community bushcare and dune-care groups to ensure such areas receive the best care.

On a wider scale, our comprehensive plan to tackle climate change also includes ratifying the Kyoto protocol, substantially increasing the mandatory renewable energy target, making every Australian school a ‘solar school’ and committing $500 million to the development of clean coal and low emissions technologies through the National Clean Coal Initiative. The Central Coast will also benefit from other Rudd government initiatives, including practical measures to improve household energy efficiency. Among these are generous rebates for solar power systems, solar hot water and rainwater tanks, as well as low-interest loans for families to undertake practical water and energy efficiency measures in their homes.

If we look at the effect that climate change could have on my electorate, we see that we are bordered on the east by the coast and have a large lakes system in the middle. Houses, residences and the community are built around the lakes and between the ocean and the lakes. If climate change is not addressed properly, if we do not properly address environmental concerns, it has been shown by some modelling that, rather than the east coast and the eastern area of Tuggerah Lakes being where the vast majority of people will live, the coastline will move to the western side of Tuggerah Lakes. Already we have had major flooding of many houses. The June long weekend last year saw my electorate become the subject of tidal surges and storm flooding that affected many residents. In fact I can report to the House that the member for the state seat of Wyong, Mr David Harris, and I are holding a picnic this Sunday to offer our congratulations and to bring a greater sense of community to all the people who rallied together at this time last year against the impact of the flooding in my electorate.

It cannot be overstated just how sensitive and vulnerable the environment is along our unique Australian coastline and in the electorate of Dobell in particular. Offering adequate compensation for any major oil spill and enforcing responsibility and accountability in the maritime industries, both in Australia and abroad, are essential. Australia is a party to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973—MARPOL—and has implemented all six technical annexes to MARPOL which, respectively, deal with the prevention of pollution by the discharge of oil, by noxious liquid substances in bulk, by harmful packaged substances, by sewage, by garbage and by air pollution from ships. The following legislation gives effect to MARPOL in Australia: the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983—the POTS act—and the Navigation Act 1912. The amendments to the POTS act will implement changes to annexes I, III and IV of MARPOL, make miscellaneous amendments to the requirements for maintenance of garbage record books and allow regulations under the POTS act to prescribe penalties of up to 50 penalty units.

This bill will improve the robustness of Australia’s maritime environment regulatory regime and provide clarity and consistency across existing legislation. Without this amendment, the pristine beaches of Dobell, the beaches surrounding this country and the waterways, such as Tuggerah Lakes, will continue to be at risk from oil spillages. This is a risk that we cannot allow to continue. As part of a suite of measures that the Rudd government has introduced to protect our environment and the economy in these areas which would be so adversely affected by such spills, this bill must be supported. In conclusion, when the risks are considered, Australia must have proper regulation, legislative protection and adequate compensation in the event of any major maritime accidents or disasters that might affect our precious coastline. For these reasons I commend the bill to the House.

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