Ms BADGER question to MINISTER for PARKS and ENVIRONMENT, Mr DUIGAN
The federal Environment department was indeed waiting for the Lake Malbena proponent to provide additional material requested in 2023: a comprehensive landscape-wide cultural heritage assessment, which is an essential piece of work for a project in a World Heritage area.
Revealed in an RTI, the proponent does not intend to undertake that assessment, instead planning to revamp an old desktop assessment, which is not what those in federal department requested, nor is it an adequate piece of work. Perhaps the minister could now enlighten us as to whether that document is what has been currently referred. When will you accept that the expressions of interest process is a failed strategy for development in our protected parks? When will you intervene to strip the lease from this negligent owner?
ANSWER
Honourable Speaker, I thank the member for the question and her interest in this matter. I note the specific element of the question which relates to information being provided to the Australian Government, and that would be a matter for the Australian Government Department to assess.
More generally about our commitment to the EOI process, as I mentioned in my previous answer, the Liberal government feels it is appropriate to have a very robust and well‑measured process to enable sensitive developments in Tasmania’s well-regarded parks and reserves system. We will continue to work through that EOI process, which is controlled through the office of the Coordinator-General. In the Parks department we will look at our responsibilities that are contained in that context.
