Posted by WATER or the survival of species, that is what Environment Minister Peter Garrett had to weigh up this week in relation to the Traveston Crossing Dam in Queensland.
The Queensland lungfish, the Mary River turtle, the Mary River cod, Coxen’s fig parrot and the Giant Barred Frog.
And that was where Wednesday’s decision was made to curtail plans of the Dam.
Queensland’s premier Anna Bligh was insistent Traveston Crossing Dam was all about securing water for South East Queensland.
Their choice of dam site threatened five species.
Mr Garrett had to rule on the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999), not on any state or federal water supply legislation.
A fact sheet on the website for the Federal Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts explains Mr Garrett’s job.
“The Act aims to balance the protection of these crucial environmental and cultural values with our society’s econmic and social needs by creating a legal framework and decision-making process, based on the guiding principles of ecologically sustainable development,” it says.
Specifically, Mr Garrett had to look at the dam proposal and judge whether it would have an impact on Australia’s biodiversity, and on nationally threatened species and ecological communities as part of this process.
Supplying water to Queenslanders had to be considered – but only as part of this equation.
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