New Orange-bellied parrot tracking data confirms the importance of northern foraging habitat, including Robbins Island, to the survival of this critically endangered species.
State Environment Minister Madelaine Ogilvie has recently trumpeted the success of the decades-long Orange-bellied parrot recovery program that has seen 92 birds return for breeding at Melaleuca this season. That hard-earned success could be decimated should the industrial windfarm go ahead at Robbins Island.
The report demonstrates that Robbins Island is a stopover on the Orange-belled parrots’ northern migration across Bass Strait, the riskiest leg of the annual migration to summer breeding grounds in the far southwest of Lutruwita/Tasmania. A wind farm at Robbins Island could harm the recovery of this already critically endangered species.
Renewable energy is critical to reduce emissions, but developments cannot come at the expense of natural and cultural heritage values. Because of natural values like habitat for endangered migratory species including parrots and shorebirds, it being the site of the last disease-free devil population and the immense Aboriginal cultural landscape values, Robbins Island has been described as the worst possible place for an industrial-scale windfarm.
This report confirms Tasmania’s EPA got it right in its original decision that stop the Robbins Island wind farm development due to the endangerment of the Orange-bellied parrot. Sadly, that decision was overturned in advance of this migration data. It’s now up to the Federal Minister to ensure the future of this critically endangered species is prioritised over private industrial development in her assessment of the Robbins Island wind farm.
