Julia’s letter and call-to-action got the headline in last week’s WesternPort News.
Here’s what she had to say:
The recent AGL/APA meetings at Balnarring, Crib Point, and Hastings were well attended, although company representatives still couldn’t answer many of the questions about the proposed LNG processing facility.
How can works be underway on Crib Point jetty to bring it up to specifications for the 17-storey tall gas treatment plant and connecting pipeline to Pakenham, when the proposal hasn’t even been approved?
The enormous list of works includes removing large areas of vegetation and will stir up polluted sediments into the water around the jetty.
The approvals from the Department of Environment, Land, Water, and Planning (DELWP) to Port of Hastings to carry out this work are the kind you’d normally expect a company like AGL to obtain in its own right. This gives the appearance that the port is being used as a front to fast-track the project.
The Victorian government announced months ago that it intends to “streamline approvals processes” and for all its talk of sustainability and green wedge credentials Mornington Peninsula Shire Council has remained silent.
The endangered coastal salt marsh surrounding the jetty is home to threatened and endangered marine life, plants and animals. Because of its rarity and significant to migratory birds, it is listed as a protected Ramsar wetland.
Any project that might impact its character must be assessed under the federal Environment Protection Biodiversity and Conservation Act, but there has been no assessment.
This internationally listed area of environmental significance is an irreplaceable natural resource that belongs to us all.
If state and federal laws designed to protect our few remaining ecosystems are incapable of defending them from the tactics of big industry, what can be done to stop these precious places being developed by the immense pressure of inappropriate development? Contact planning minister Richard Wynne 94158901 or richard.wynne@parliament.vic.gov.au.
