Address to the Queensland Media Club

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I’d like to start by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of the lands on which we gather here today, the Jagera and Turrbal people, and pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging.

For tens of thousands of years Australia’s Indigenous peoples have cared for the lands, seas and waterways of this region we all call home and their knowledge and practices remain valuable to this day.

I’d also like to acknowledge my good mate and a champion for our state’s environment, Queensland Opposition Leader, Steven Miles, along with Ipswich Mayor, Teresa Harding. Thank you to the Queensland Media Club for the invitation to speak to you all today at what is really a fork in the road for the environment and indeed our economy in this state.

Most of you will know that we are now in the final stages of attempting to reform our country’s environmental laws.

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act is now 25 years old and it is time for an overhaul.

We are hopefully now reaching the end of a long, five year journey since former ACCC Chair, Professor Graeme Samuel, handed down his reform blueprint to then Environment Minister Sussan Ley.

Queensland’s environment – and some of our greatest natural and economic assets - are facing ever more pressure from climate change, habitat destruction and natural disasters.

It’s vital that we do all we can to protect the environment and the hundreds of thousands of Queensland jobs that rely on it – in industries like tourism, agriculture, resources and more.

And right now, we have a once in a generation chance to do just that.

INTRODUCTION

Usually when I give a speech down south, I start by telling a story about one of the great natural wonders in this state we are so lucky to call home.

But that introduction seems a bit redundant in a room full of Queenslanders.

Because you all know the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef, the wonder of K’gari, the vibrancy of Lamington National Park and that amazing desert country in Western Queensland.

My job as the Federal Environment Minister is to ensure that we are protecting these incredibly important sites as well as protecting our international reputation as good environmental stewards.

But it’s also my job to ensure that approvals for job creating, productivity boosting projects can proceed where appropriate.

Getting this balance right, and achieving both aims - the environment AND economy – was at the core of Graeme Samuel’s recommendations and it’s at the core of the reforms we intend to pass through Federal Parliament next week.

WHY WE NEED REFORM

Any honest assessment of our environment must acknowledge the pressure nature is under.

Here in Queensland, the most recent State of the Environment Report found that:

"Between 2019 and 2024, the number of threatened species for Queensland has increased by 48 fauna species and 66 flora species”

That’s species that Queensland is renowned for, like the koala, which was listed as endangered in 2022, with too many other birds, mammals and other species threatened with extinction as well. These reforms are desperately needed to shift the dial in favour of our environment.

Equally, we’ve seen project approval times blow out, from a median timeframe of 48 weeks at the turn of the century, to 118 weeks now. Costing business time and money, and strangling the homes and renewables we need.

In short, reforming these laws is vital to protect our precious natural environment, on which life depends, as do those jobs everywhere from Cape York, to Camooweal and Coolangatta.

But this Act is also incredibly important to giving business certainty and achieving our national priorities, like building more homes, more renewables and harvesting the critical minerals needed for the future.

When I started in this role, I said the environmental reform train is leaving the station and that I wanted as many people on that train as possible, rather than shouting from the platform as it rushed by.

And I’ve followed through, bringing up well over 120 meetings with key stakeholders, state and territory ministers, the Federal Coalition, Greens and independent parliamentarians.

My office and I have consulted everyone from the Queensland Resources Council to the Queensland Conservation Council and countless in between.

That work has resulted in a balanced package of reforms centring on three key pillars.

They are:

• Preserving what’s precious by strengthening environmental protection and restoration.
• Delivering a power surge for productivity through quicker project assessments and approvals.
• And cementing these reforms, by enshrining greater accountability and transparency in environmental decision making.

PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT

There’s a reason why the suite of legislation we’ve now passed through the House of Representatives is called the Environment Protection Reform Bills.

Because our national environment law must protect our environment. And when this bill is passed, it will, with several demonstrable gains for nature.

First, the reforms will create a new Ministerial power to make National Environmental Standards, which will be regulations under the Act.

These standards were the centrepiece of the Samuel Review, and will set the boundaries for decisions, to ensure they deliver improved environmental outcomes.

Importantly, they will also provide certainty and guidance for business by setting clear and enforceable expectations and uplifting the quality and consistency of decision-making.

Professor Samuel made the point that it’s vital these reforms not just protect but restore our precious natural environment.

That’s why projects will be required, by law, to avoid, mitigate and repair damage to protected matters, wherever possible.

Any residual significant impacts on nationally protected matters must be fully offset to achieve a ‘net gain’ for the environment, an improvement on the existing policy of ‘no net loss’.

A net gain could be achieved either by the proponent directly delivering an offset or through an upfront financial contribution to a restoration fund, managed by an independent statutory officer in the Department.

We will stop projects that have an unacceptable impact on the environment and there will be higher penalties for the most significant breaches of environmental law, as well as environment protection orders for use in urgent circumstances to prevent and respond to major contraventions of the law.

These are just some of the reform measures that deliver more protection for the environment.

But more than that, they start to shift the dial away from simply protecting the environment from harm, towards restoring nature, towards recovery.

POWERING PRODUCTIVITY

The second pillar of these reforms is delivering a power surge for productivity through quicker project assessments and approvals.

I’ve already cited the figures on the economic cost of delayed projects, not to mention the community impact of slower approvals for housing, renewables and more.

So a key focus of our reforms is removing duplication in the Federal and State approvals and assessment systems for projects, all while maintaining strong environmental standards.

The current system, which requires proponents to navigate multiple assessment and approval processes across Federal, state and territory jurisdictions, creates lengthy delays while delivering no benefit for the environment.

Our new laws will enhance our ability to enter bilateral agreements, which would see states and territories undertake one set of assessments and, over time approvals, against both their own requirements and Federal standards.

This delivers on a key recommendation from Professor Samuel, and would see proponents go through one assessment process, rather than two, in some cases saving years of delay. I’ve had some encouraging discussions on this with the Queensland Environment Minister and I look forward to progressing them once our laws are passed.

Other aspects of the reforms to provide more efficient and robust project assessments include a new Streamlined Assessment Pathway.

This will significantly reduce the assessment timeframe for proponents who provide sufficient information upfront and provides an incentive to proponents to meet the standards upfront.

In addition, the reforms will allow for the greater use of regional planning.

Under this approach, we can work with other levels of government, industry and communities to identify upfront “go zones” and “no go zones” in a particular region.

This allows projects in areas of low environmental value to be approved quickly, and gives clarity on areas where development is unlikely to proceed, because of its high environmental value.

We’ve begun pilots of this new approach with the Queensland Government, focusing on housing development, wind farms and mining respectively and we’re keen to do more.

PUTTING CONFIDENCE IN THE SYSTEM

The third and final pillar is cementing these reforms, by enshrining greater accountability and transparency in environmental decision making.

Currently, the community lacks confidence in decisions made about the environment and in whether our laws are properly enforced.

If these reforms are to endure, we need to rebuild confidence in decisions made under the Act.

Critical to this task is the establishment of a new independent watchdog which can enforce those laws.

Labor has gone to the past two elections promising to create Australia’s first, independent, national Environment Protection Agency, and we intend to deliver on that promise.

The new national EPA would be a cornerstone of the environmental law reforms, ensuring independent compliance and enforcement and delegated decision making.

In line with the recommendations of the Samuel Review, the EPA would have access to stronger new powers and increased penalties to better protect and restore Australia’s unique environment.

Under current laws, decision-making on project assessments and approvals is the responsibility of the Minister, who is democratically accountable.

This will not change. I note that this preservation of Ministerial responsibility for decision-making is agreed by all parties, including the Coalition and the Greens.

The creation of a National EPA by the Albanese Government is a huge step forward to lock in protections for nature and builds on Labor’s strong environmental legacy.

We are also delivering on Professor Samuel’s recommendation that the Act should better harness and value First Nations knowledge about supporting healthy Country, built up over 60,000 years.

The reforms will codify the involvement of First Nations people, via the Indigenous Advisory Committee (IAC), into the Commonwealth’s environmental governance and decision-making, including in the development of the National Environmental Standards.

Finally, the reforms also introduce new emissions disclosure requirements.

In keeping with Professor Samuel’s recommendations, we haven’t included a climate trigger in the legislation.

Rather the reforms will require major emitting project proponents to disclose estimates of Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions as part of gaining federal environmental approval.

This will provide a clearer linkage to climate-related policies, such as the Safeguard Mechanism, but will not be taken into account in project approval decisions.

THE FALSE CHOICE

Many commentators and politicians want to frame this legislation as a tug-of-war between the environment and the economy.

They assert a false choice – that you can have one, but not the other.

This is plain wrong.

You don’t have to choose between the environment and jobs and business.

We can protect and improve our environment, while removing duplication and speeding up approvals – that was the secret sauce of Professor Samuel’s report.

In the same way we moved beyond the notion that you could act on climate change or have jobs, we have to move beyond this false choice, when it comes to nature.

And that is the path that I am trying to navigate in getting these laws passed through the Senate next week.

I know there is a lot of interest in who we are going to do a deal with and the truth is I am still currently negotiating with both parties. I’ve now met with the Coalition and Greens spokespeople six or seven or eight times each and that will continue.

I've said from the moment I took on this portfolio a few short months ago that we are prepared to pass reforms to our national environment laws with either the Coalition or the Greens.

I have also said that I'm a realist when it comes to getting legislation through the Senate and. I recognise that we will need to make some amendments to get it through.

But be in no doubt - we will be passing these reforms next week, and it's now up to the Coalition and the Greens to decide whether they want to get on board. If we can’t pass the laws with one side, we will do it with the other, it’s as simple as that.

For those who want to see us do a deal with the Coalition, you need to speak to them and get them to focus on the needs of Australia, including environmental law reform, rather than focusing on who's going to be the next leader of the Liberal Party.

I’ve said all along that my biggest concern about working with the Coalition is whether they can stop their infighting and focus on these reforms and their value to the business community.

Australians want us to focus on their needs, not who gets to sit in the big chair, so there's a really big opportunity here for the Coalition to - just for one week - put aside their leadership turmoil and focus on the real benefits that will come from these reforms.

And equally on the Greens side, it's up to them now to decide whether they want to make progress for the environment, or just keep protesting and grandstanding.

I think everyone here is well aware of the Greens Party’s history of blocking positive and progressive reform, like more housing and these very reforms last term. Here in Brisbane, the Greens Party paid a big price at the last election for making the perfect the enemy of the good. They have a chance now to show they’ve heard the message.

Both sides need to put aside the political games for the next week and help us deliver a balanced set of reforms that produce real steps forward, for both the environment and for business.

NET ZERO

Of course, this is not the only environmental issue in the public debate at the moment – there’s also climate change and net zero.

Part of the hard work of government is to ensure we are ready for the challenges and opportunities of the future.

And while acting on climate change is certainly a challenge, it’s also an opportunity to protect our environment for future generations.

Just as it is an economic opportunity for a country that has bountiful sunshine and wind.

Already, we see thousands of new jobs being created as part of the transition towards cheaper, cleaner energy.

And most of these new jobs are in regional areas, including right here in Queensland.

Which is why it’s so baffling when politicians who claim to represent the regions are the loudest in seeking to block these opportunities.

Like senior members of the LNP, including Queensland Senator Matt Canavan and his mentor Barnaby Joyce, who have driven the policy direction firstly of the National Party and now the Liberal Party and the Coalition.

The Liberals' humiliating handover of climate and energy policy to these anti-renewable zealots - who still debate whether climate change is real - is like putting Dracula in charge of the blood bank.

It's hard to think of a more anti-Queensland policy than the Federal Coalition's decision to walk away from net zero emissions by 2050 - something supported by everyone from the Business Council and Minerals Council of Australia and the National Farmers Federation.

There are three reasons why this decision, if it was ever implemented, would hurt Queensland and Queenslanders.

First, it would condemn us to higher power prices, at a time when Queenslanders want them to fall.

The issue we face, as increasingly unreliable and expensive coal-fired power reaches the end of its life, is how we build the energy grid needed to replace it. And we have a choice of the technologies we use to do so.

On the one side, we can choose renewables, backed up by gas, batteries and hydro power, which every credible scientific and energy expert, including the CSIRO and the Australian Energy Market Operator tells us is the cheapest form of new power available.

On the other, we have the Coalition, whose ideological opposition to renewables means they want to sign Queenslanders up to higher cost forms of power, like coal and nuclear. Let there be no mistake - the Coalition’s pathway means even higher power bills for every Queensland household, for decades to come.

Second, these higher energy costs will sacrifice thousands of Queensland jobs, especially in our regions. We know that heavy industry is struggling with higher energy costs, but the Coalition’s answer is to burden them with even cost power, risking more closures and lost jobs.

It also denies business the opportunity to grab international markets, and the jobs that come with it, by converting to the cleaner fuel sources their customers are demanding. In key Queensland industries, like agriculture and resources, world markets are demanding low-emission products and the Coalition pathway puts that at risk.

To give one example - Rio Tinto's massive Boyne Island aluminium smelter in Gladstone is, right now, converting its huge, 24/7 power demand to renewables, powered by a new solar farm just up the road. Not because Rio Tinto's executives are closet greenies, but because they want cheaper power and because their international competitors are also switching to cleaner, renewable power.

If we follow the Coalition and do a u-turn away from renewables, the rest of the world will simply pass us by and steal those very industries and the jobs they produce.

Third, the Federal Coalition's decision exposes Queenslanders to more frequent and more intense natural disasters.

We are the most disaster prone state in the country, with floods, cyclones, storms and bushfires wreaking havoc, taking lives and costing billions of dollars every year. More than any other state, Queenslanders live the reality of climate change every single summer and it's now starting earlier. And despite us knowing that climate change will drive even more disasters, the Federal Coalition has just told Queenslanders they don't care.

The only question now is when this merry band of climate deniers will bring their high power price crusade to the Queensland LNP?

To date, Premier David Crisafulli has maintained a commitment to net zero by 2050. But there are worrying signs his commitment is not shared by his colleagues.

We've seen his government cancel wind farms, after listening to AI generated submissions that cited fake wind farms and so-called reports from organisations that don’t even exist.

Of course, short-sighted decisions like this put a big “not open for business” sign on Queensland’s front door.

And they only make it harder for the Queensland Government to reduce power bills or achieve their own emission reduction targets.

And that's before their Canberra-based colleagues come north for their summer recess, ready to strike out support for net zero from their state colleagues’ platform.

I can tell you - the Albanese Government won’t be distracted by the circus on the Coalition.

We will listen to the science, the economic evidence and the desire of Queenslanders for cheaper power.

There is no doubt whatsoever that we clearly have more to do to reach our energy and environmental goals, and it is also clear that the Labor Party is the only party ready to face the challenges head on to achieve them.

The only party with a plan to reduce energy prices, reduce emissions and to capture the jobs and economic opportunities that cheaper, cleaner energy will bring.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, with our national environmental law reforms ready to pass the Senate next week, we really are on the precipice of something special.

Something that has been 25 years in the making and has taken a lot of hard work from a lot of people.

Something that our environment, business and our community desperately need to be done. Not in another five years – now.

By this time next week the parliament can come together to pass laws that will and start restoring our environment, lift productivity and deliver the homes, renewables and critical minerals we need right now.

The Coalition have a chance to show they care about the environment and the future prosperity of this country.

The Greens Party have a chance to show they have learned the lessons of the past and won’t block meaningful reform in the search for perfection.

Every day we delay these important reforms means more destruction of our environment and time and money wasted by business.

Let’s get these laws passed so we can build a better future for our country and it’s greatest state – Queensland.

Thank you.