Bills

Heritage Places (Great Australian Bight) Amendment Bill

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. R.A. SIMMS (16:00): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Heritage Places Act 1993 and to make related amendment to the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. R.A. SIMMS (16:01): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Australia is known for its beautiful and unique natural landscapes. From the Snowy Mountains, the Tablelands, the Great Ocean Road to the Red Centre, we really do have it all. One of these iconic Australian landscapes is the Great Australian Bight. It is where the desert meets the sea on the Yerkala Mirning country, and I want to acknowledge that First Nations people have cared for that land and sea country for over 65,000 years.

Containing one of the most pristine ocean environments left on earth and the longest continual sea cliffs—some 120 metres high—the Bight is a critical habitat for countless species and it holds sacred whale dreaming stories for the Mirning people. It is estimated that 85 per cent of the species that call the Great Australian Bight home are found nowhere else on earth. The Bight is a vital carving and gathering area for endangered southern right whales who gather there in winter, and it can offer incredible whale watching from June to October. Once hunted to the brink of extinction, the whales are protected and their numbers are increasing.

Australian sea lions, also once hunted to the verge of extinction, find refuge in the Bight. Eighty per cent of the population live in the Bight. They dive for fish, squid, rock lobster and small sharks and rays. They rest and raise their young on the flat rocks that line the coast. These sea lions will swim up to five days with no rest to get to the Great Australian Bight. Leafy sea dragons shelter in kelp forests of the Great Southern Reef and camouflage as drifting seaweed. There are 36 species of dolphins and whales that can be found in the Bight. Imagine seeing a whole pod of dolphins playing in the waves or up to a hundred whales at once.

Along the coast, there is ancient rock art and caves that are sacred places for First Nations people. The Bight sustains wild fisheries and aquaculture industries that are worth around $440 million per year and a regional tourism industry worth $1.2 billion per year. But this is all under threat from oil exploration. The Great Australian Bight Alliance has noted that:

The threats posed by opening the Bight to oil exploration are unacceptable. Not only is there potential for a catastrophic oil spill, the poorly understood effects of seismic testing, strike risk and noise pollution from drilling and boat traffic, and increased pollution have the potential to fundamentally disrupt this unique marine environment.

Industrialisation in the Bight is putting all that beauty at risk. There has been modelling done to show the potential impacts of an oil spill. I would encourage members to find this map for themselves on the Great Australian Bight Alliance's website. It shows the potential for an oil spill to contaminate the entire coast of South Australia, southern Western Australia, and reaching as far as Phillip Island in Victoria and the western coast of Tasmania. Of course, the biggest risk is the coastline along the Bight, including the iconic Bunda Cliffs.

Imagine almost every single beach in South Australia covered in oil. The impacts are not only felt by the unique ecosystems along these coasts but also right across our economy. It would be catastrophic for small coastal towns that rely on the Bight for their tourism, and this is what we are risking if we allow oil drilling in the Bight, which is why we need to protect the Bight in whatever ways we can.

There has been a long-running campaign for the Great Australian Bight to be put forward for consideration for World Heritage listing, and the Greens have been proud to be part of that campaign for many years now. Back when drilling on the Great Australian Bight was in prospect during my time in the federal parliament, I worked with Senator Nick Xenophon to establish a parliamentary inquiry into drilling in the Bight so that we could highlight the risks associated with that.

Earlier this month in the federal parliament, my federal colleague Senator Sarah Hanson-Young introduced a bill that would require the federal environment minister to nominate the Bight for consideration for World Heritage protection. This would protect this South Australian icon from oil and gas drilling forever. More than two-thirds of South Australians oppose drilling in the Bight, including the traditional owners.

I understand the South Australian government have previously indicated their support to the federal government for the Bight being submitted for World Heritage listing. I welcome that, but this is an opportunity for the Malinauskas government to put their money where their mouth is. We need to see state listing, we need to see national listing and then of course we need to see world listing of this iconic site.

Members will know that I am a strong advocate for adding iconic spaces such as this on to the heritage list. I have another bill before parliament that would add the Adelaide Parklands to the State Heritage Register. This was passed some time ago by this parliament. It was supported by the Labor Party when they were in opposition. When they found themselves back in government, they welched on that commitment, and I urge them to back listing for the Adelaide Parklands and of course the Great Australian Bight.

The bill I am introducing today would see the areas of the Bight that fall under state jurisdiction listed as a state heritage area. While the federal government continues to drag its heels for World Heritage listing, this bill offers the protection that we can have at a state level and would give the state government an opportunity to really show their support for the Bight. What a wonderful thing it would be if we saw Premier Malinauskas listing the Bight in South Australia, if we saw Prime Minister Albanese—because God help us all if Peter Dutton ever finds his way into The Lodge in terms of what that means for the environment. It is my hope that we never see the Hon. Peter Dutton getting anywhere near The Lodge as he would be a disaster for our environment and our economy.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. R.A. SIMMS: It is my hope that what we see is Prime Minister Albanese and Premier Malinauskas working together to list the Great Australian Bight and to ensure that it gets the protection it deserves.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.