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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-08 Daily Xml
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MARATHON RESOURCES

The Hon. M. PARNELL (15:09): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Hon. Paul Holloway, the former minister for mineral resource development, a question about the granting of a new exploration licence to Marathon Resources.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M. PARNELL: Yesterday, Marathon Resources confirmed that they had agreed to accept a new exploration licence over the spectacular and iconic Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary that was offered to them by the Rann government. The response from geologists, ecologists and the wider South Australian community has been predictable: it has been total condemnation.

Also at odds with previous practice, the Sprigg family, the owners of part of the sanctuary and custodians of the rest, were kept totally in the dark about the conditions of the new licence by the Department of Primary Industries. The Spriggs were devastated to discover that the company has been allowed back in to drill for the first time since 2007, which is a clear betrayal of the commitment made by acting minister Jack Snelling on 21 December last year that the licence would contain stricter conditions.

The significant weakening of the conditions that have severely restricted Marathon's operations over the last three years has surprised many. For example, this morning on ABC radio, Matthew Abraham said:

...this program understood from a very good source before Christmas that the Rann government was considering doing the absolute reverse and, that is, not extending the mining lease, the exploration lease and in fact was considering options including making it a national park and banning mining completely from there, so quarantining it...we don't know what happened from then until now but it was quite good information, (if) I can put it that way. We do know though that Marathon Resources is very well connected, has former Labor senator, former party secretary Chris Schacht first as a lobbyist, now he is a director of Marathon Resources. You do wonder whether he and others got cracking in the interim because that did send a bit of a shiver through Marathon Resources...

My questions of the former minister are:

1. What happened between October and December of last year to change your mind about throwing Marathon Resources out of Arkaroola?

2. Did you have any communication or conversations with John or Davina Quirke from lobbyist firm Pallidon, Chris Schacht, or Senator Don Farrell over the future of Marathon Resources between October and December of last year?

3. Why weren't the Spriggs consulted by PIRSA about the conditions of the new licence, which is a clear breach of the understanding that you previously gave in this place about the importance of the relationship with the owners of the Arkaroola Sanctuary for the future success of mining activities on that site?

4. Why has the requirement for approval of the chief executive of the environment department prior to entering the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary to carry out exploration been removed from the new licence?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (15:12): I suggest that the Hon. Mr Parnell reads the press statement that was put out by the acting minister, the now Treasurer, Mr Snelling, in my absence in December. That remains the position, as far as I am aware, in relation to Arkaroola. For any other matters I suggest that he put his question on notice to the new Minister for Mineral Resources Development.

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