Beyond the obvious fact that at least this isn’t an unconditional approval, there is only one really good thing about Peter Garrett’s pulp mill decision today: it puts the mill firmly on the 2010 election agenda!
Having approved a pile of modules for the mill that will see Tassie Devils and other wildlife flattened by log trucks, as well as their habitat destroyed by continued old growth logging, Minister Garrett essentially gave Gunns a 2 year extension to find funding, based on major questions that remain over effluent and hydrodynamic modelling in Bass Strait.
The effluent issue is one that has been a major concern from the very beginning. You can see Tasmanian scallop fisherman John Hammond talking about it here – and posted in video at the bottom of this post. Christine Milne has been trying for months to get hold of a significant report (the Herzfeld report) on hydrodynamic modelling that will have a major impact on how the issue progresses, but Gunns has been doing everything it can to block access, in December appealing to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to stop it being made public after the Environment Department finally agreed to the FOI request after two appeals. Clearly Gunns has something to hide here!
If the modelling demonstrates that the effluent will not disperse in Bass Strait the way Gunns claims it will, Gunns will have to invest in tertiary treatment for the plant – a very expensive operation but one which has been obviously necessary from the very start.
Today, Minister Garrett gave Gunns 26 months to prove their case – taking the deadline out to March 2011 – a few months after the next federal election is due. So, once again, the pulp mill could and should make it onto the federal election agenda. Might even make a difference in a couple of Greens / Labor marginals!
Bring it on!
The longer this takes, the less likely it becomes that the mill will go ahead. And it’s looking pretty damn unlikely from here right now. But of course, in the meantime, every day that goes by Gunns is logging more and more Tassie forest under the wood supply agreement for a mill that doesn’t now, and quite probably will never, exist…
Here’s the one and only John Hammond for your enjoyment.
