New national environment laws: some wins, but a big fail for the Kimberley on climate

The new national environment laws, announced today and set to be passed by the Federal Parliament, include some improvements such as making forest logging subject to the new Act and closing loopholes for land clearing in the Great Barrier Reef catchment, but overall the improvements are not enough to stop the steep decline in nature, particularly in the Kimberley.

The Greens managed to stop the ‘water trigger’ assessments for fracking being handed to the states and territories. They also helped prevent the fast-tracking of oil and gas projects.

“The Greens managed to save some of the furniture, but there’s a massive fight ahead to ensure that the National Environment Standards are strong and that regional plans don’t allow the fast-tracking of industrial projects and land clearing across the Kimberley,” said Environs Kimberley Executive Director Martin Pritchard.

The Kimberley's Danggu Geikie Gorge. Photo: Adam Monk.

“What we don’t want to see is the new Act just handing powers to the WA Government, given the Cook Government’s track record on weakening the state’s Environment Protection Act and bringing a development Czar who can override environmental assessments and wave them through without rigorous scrutiny,” Mr Pritchard said.

“The new national environment laws are a once-in-a-generation reform, and the Albanese Government has squandered the opportunity to bring oil and gas projects under emissions scrutiny in the new Act,” he said.

“The Kimberley is the only region on the continent that hasn’t had mammal extinctions, and it has the largest, most intact tropical savannah in the world, but it’s going to be the most impacted by climate change – the new act does nothing to mitigate that.”

“The recent National Climate Risk Assessment is showing the Kimberley will be uninhabitable on current climate projections. This would mean Traditional Owners, who’ve lived here for thousands of years, will be climate refugees, yet the new environment Act will not look at the climate impacts of fossil fuel projects.”

Threatened bilbies. Photo: Damian Kelly.

“Fitzroy Crossing, which already has 67 days a year over 40°C, is projected to have 225 days a year over 40°C by 2090 on current emissions projections.”

“The Kimberley has two of the largest climate threats in the country – Woodside’s Browse Basin proposal at Scott Reef, and Black Mountain’s Valhalla fracking proposal in the Martuwarra Fitzroy River catchment. These projects won’t be captured by the new laws, and that’s a travesty for nature and people in the Kimberley.”

“What these new laws show is that it is still going to take massive people power to protect the nature of the Kimberley.”

Help protect the Kimberley by becoming a member of Environs Kimberley here.

Header photo: The Kimberley's Martuwarra Fitzroy River. Photo: Wendy Mitchell.

Environs Kimberley (EK) has rejected Woodside’s just-announced changes to its Browse gas project on Scott Reef as ‘tinkering around the edges’.

The WA EPA is now seeking public comment on Woodside’s five proposed ‘Section 43A’ changes which the company claims will reduce the project’s environmental risks and impacts.

Executive Director of EK, Martin Pritchard, said the proposed changes would in no way change the fact that the Scott Reef project should never be approved.

“Scott Reef is a natural jewel off the Kimberley coast. There is no way that drilling, processing and piping gas in this living marine environment could ever be made environmentally acceptable.

“In 2024 it was revealed via an FOI application that the EPA had formed the ‘preliminary view’ that Woodside’s Browse proposal was environmentally unacceptable.  According to the documents, the EPA cited threats to endangered whales and turtles and the risk of an oil spill and concluded that the project posed threats of serious or irreversible damage.

“Woodside’s tinkering has done nothing to change the reality that its project is unacceptable.

Scott Reef. Photo: Wendy Mitchell.

“We are dealing with a global climate and extinction crisis caused in large part by fossil fuels. It makes absolutely no sense to locate a new fossil fuel project, which would result in millions of tonnes of additional GHG emissions, in an environment rich in rare and threatened marine life like Pygmy blue whales, dolphins, marine turtles and sea snakes, as well as countless fish and coral species.

“Instead of tinkering with the project and toying with the assessment process, Woodside should get serious and drop the whole proposal.”

Banner image: Scott Reef. Photo: Alex Westover.

The Broome peninsula has a magnificent coastline.

Stretching back through geological time, the Broome sandstone harbours 130-million-year-old dinosaur footprints with profound meaning to traditional custodians. Then there are the 2,000-year-old human ones. Cultural treasures that feature in ancient stories are embedded in the rock and coastline. Registered Aboriginal heritage sites abound along the coast, middens attesting to the food riches sustained over millennia.

The reefs, with more than 40 species of coral, are gems of colour, shape and size, home to Clownfish, octopuses and anemones. Stand at Entrance Point at the right time and you can see Humpback Whales steaming past, Snubfin Dolphins hunting the Roebuck Deeps and, around the corner at Simpson's Beach, endangered sawfish skim for food and schools of salmon swim for their lives along the shore.

Recent photographs of previously undocumented animals (undoubtedly known to First Nations people), such as an unusual crab and poisonous anemone, show how little we know and how rich this tropical coastline is. During a recent visit to Reddell Beach (remember the marina planned for it?) with a marine biologist, we saw a Leopard Ray shoot off from our feet, a turtle pop its head up and birds dive-bomb fish balls – “It's so good to see this ecosystem is healthy; down south they're trashed,” was the comment.

With such a rich natural and cultural history, wouldn't we be protecting it? 'No' appears to be the answer from the state government, with its support for the plan to build an industrial floating jetty that would cut through the popular, rich reef of Entrance Point.

Just around the corner, plans for a unique Broome beach, bookended by sandstone headlands, are to cover it in 10 metres of concrete. In front, where we can now see Gourdon Bay across the turquoise waters of Roebuck Bay, would rise a 12-metre rock wall to serve as a breakwater. The estimated costs to taxpayers three years ago - $77 million. Inflation and a tradie shortage make it more than $100 million now. The purpose - to allow tinnies a few extra hours in the day to launch and for inexperienced boaties to bring in vessels when they haven't checked the weather and tides and find they're in trouble.

As locals born and bred here keep saying, if you can't launch and retrieve a boat safely now, you shouldn't be in the ocean without an experienced hand with an understanding of tides and wind around Broome. Instead of destroying one of Broome's most beautiful recreational beaches full of marine life and geological treasures, a memorial site for loved past residents of Broome, for $100 million, let's spend it on looking after Country and people.

You can help protect Entrance Point Reef by sending a message to Premier Roger Cook and Minister for Ports David Michael here.

Photos of Entrance Point Reef life: Sharmaine Donnelly. Photo of Broome locals protest: Damian Kelly.