Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, representing the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Abetz. Will the minister please update the Senate on how the government has moved to protect the biological diversity of Australia’s south-east oceans whilst also protecting the livelihoods and jobs of our fishermen? Further, is the minister aware of any alternative policies?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Parry for his question and acknowledge his longstanding interest in ensuring that this issue was resolved in the way that he has outlined. The concern that he has shown has been shared by you; Mark Baker, the member for Braddon; Michael Ferguson, the member for Bass; other fellow members around the south-east coast of South Australia; our Liberal senators from Tasmania and, might I say, particularly Senator Richard Colbeck.

The new south-east marine protected areas announced on Friday are a win for both the environment and fishermen. Indeed, we have had such a good outcome that I would have been prepared to take this question in my capacity as minister for fisheries. I am proud to say that the hallmark of this government’s approach to managing the environment has been balance—balancing the need to maintain jobs with the need to protect the environment; balancing the socioeconomic needs of today’s Australians with the need to preserve our environment for future generations.

The Howard government did this with the Tasmanian forests, and now we have done it with the oceans. Allow me to elaborate. This final south-east marine park area represents 226,000 square kilometres. It is an area three times the size of my home state of Tasmania. Over 80 per cent of seamounts—very important biodiversity regions—are protected. When this is declared later this year, the Howard government will have more than doubled Australia’s marine protected area estate from 368,000 square kilometres in 1996 to 820,000 square kilometres. From a global perspective, Australia will have 30 per cent of the world’s marine protected areas.

From a fishing perspective, the outcomes are just as good. More than 20 changes were made to the final network to reduce the impact on the fishing industry by more than 90 per cent. The impact on the scallop industry has been removed altogether. There is now only a small level of impact on the rock lobster industry—no more than a couple of tonnes, which can be caught outside the MPAs. The proposal to exclude demersal and auto long-lining from the multiple use MPAs around Tasmania has been dropped, and instead the Fisheries Management Authority will develop specific management arrangements to protect gulper sharks. As you can see, it is a sensible, balanced outcome, which the government hopes will cost not one single job.

The World Wide Fund for Nature said of this network:

These new marine protected areas are a significant contribution to the protection of marine biodiversity in Australia, and certainly impressive by world standards ...

The Commonwealth Fisheries Association said that the network of MPAs announced by the government today is a balanced and rational outcome that is broadly supported by the fishing industry. When you have good science, as was provided by Professor Colin Buxton, goodwill from industry and a sensible government approach, you can get these outcomes for the benefit of current generations of Australian fishers and for future generations of Australians with a good environmental outcome. (Time expired)