Senate Fish Committee Inquiry just part of a Green’s $5.48B Development …

… and 5,442 Job Kill-Off for Tasmania: Lambie

Independent Senator for Tasmania Jacqui Lambie has released figures obtained by independent Parliamentary Library Research and Business owners which show that over the last decade the Green’s opposition to development in Tasmania has caused at least a loss of $5.48B worth of business development and 5,442 jobs. (see below).

“The Greens have strangled Tasmania’s economy for 10 years. It’s clear, after attending recent hearings, that their Senate Environment and Communications Committee inquiry into the Tasmanian aquaculture industry – is just part of the same pattern of political behaviour, which has caused our state to suffer the highest unemployment rate in Australia.

The last decade of development objections totalling $5.48B in Tasmania isn’t enough for the Greens. The Senate Committee hearing I took part in is further proof that the Greens are coming after our $0.5B a year Salmon and Trout industries – and the thousands of direct and indirect jobs attached to Tasmania’s aquaculture businesses. “ said Senator Lambie.

“And I haven’t even tried to calculate the financial and social cost of businesses, who over the years watched the Green chaos, found that investing in Tasmania was just too hard and took their money elsewhere. If those businesses were included in the research, the figures could easily rise to more than $10B and 10,000 jobs lost to Tasmania over the last decade.

And that’s why I stand by my comparison of the Greens with ISIS. The figures show that they are trying to drag Tasmania and other States of Australia back to the dark ages.” said Senator Lambie.

“The Greens have a history of using taxpayers’ money to sabotage our economy and kill real jobs. The Greens are directly responsible for Tasmania’s youth unemployment rate which is the highest in Australia – and all the terrible social problems (drugs, crime, suicide) that comes with a dangerous, hopeless unemployment crisis.” said Senator Lambie.

Green’s Tasmanian Development and Job kill-off Cost.
10 year Financial Impact.

Gunns Pulp Mill
Impacts

Gunns Pulp Mill began the approval process to build a new pulp mill in 2004, with eventual approval granted in 2007. During 2007, three separate conservation groups challenged the approval. The challenge failed. The company had been trading for over 140 years before it went into liquidation and its established mills sold off to repay creditors. The new mill was not built.

The impact assessment for the pulp mill project estimated:

• A capital expenditure of around $1.5 billion.12
• On average during the operational phase of the mill, employment in Tasmania would be expected to increase by 1,617 more jobs than would otherwise have been the case.13
• Employment in Tasmania is expected to grow throughout the operating phase of the mill up to around 2,000 additional jobs inTasmania because of the pulp mill.14

1. KPMG, The Community Investment Dividend: measuring the value of community investment to support your social licence, 2013, website, accessed 13 June 2015.
2. Department of the Environment, ‘Gunns Bleached Kraft Pulp Mill at Long Reach (near Bell Bay) or near Hampshire’, Department of the Environment website, accessed 9 July 2015
3. Department of the Environment, ‘Gunns Bleached Kraft Pulp Mill, Longreach (near Bell Bay’, Department of the Environment website, accessed 9 July 2015
4. M. Denholm, ‘Premier races to save pulp mill plan’, The Australian, 15 March 2007, P.1, accessed 9 July 2015.
5. Department of the Environment, ‘Kraft Pulp Mill and ancillary chemical production and infrastructure‘, Department of the Environment website, accessed 9 July 2015
6. AAP, ‘Timeline for the pulp mill project’, smh.com.au website, 4 October 2007, accessed 9 July 2015.
7. S. Markham, ‘Vow to fight $1.7 b pulp mill despite ruling’, Canberra Times, 23 November 2007, P. 2, accessed 9 July 2015.
8. Lawyers for Forest, ‘About the pulp mill case’, Lawyers for Forests website, accessed 9 July 2015.
9. Department of the Environment, ‘Gunns pulp mill approval – EPBC 2007/3385’, Department of the Environment website, accessed 9 July 2015.

Tasmanian Development Project Questions 2

Shree Minerals Nelson River magnetite mine

Impacts
The environmental Impact Statement for the mine states the following economic impact:
Recently updated economic modelling estimates that at full operating capacity the project would:

Employ 125 full time employees (by the company & /or through contractors) with many more employed indirectly because of flow-on effects.

Result in a business turnover of approximately $70 to $88 million per annum for a total of approximately $1.5 billion over the Project life.

The construction of the processing plant and infrastructure will cost approximately $15 M and $5 M respectively. It is expected that construction will be undertaken by a local contractor(s), thereby benefiting the local community.26

15. Department of the Environment, ‘Referral Details: Shree Minerals Nelson River Mine’, Department of the Environmet website, accessed 9 July 2015.
16. J. Feehely, ‘Legal challenges to Tarkine mine’, National Environmental Law Review, issue 2013:2, P. 28, accessed 9 July 2015.
17. Federal Court of Australia, ‘Tarkine National Coalition Incorporated v Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities [2013] FCA 694 (17 July 2013)’, Federal Court of Australia website, accessed 9 July 2015.
18. Department of the Environment, ‘Referral Details: Shree Minerals Nelson River Mine’, Department of the Environmet website, accessed 9 July 2015.
19. Shree Minerals, Final Environmental Impact Statement Nelson Bay River Magnetite Mine (EPBC 2011/5846) ,2012, website, accessed 14 July 2015.
20. Department of the Environment. ‘Venture Minerals Riley DSO Hemtatite Mine Project (EPBC 2012/6339)’, Department of the Environment website, accessed 10 July 2015.
21. Rural, ‘Enviro group to challenge Tas ore mine’, Tas Country Hour, 26 September 2013, ABC website, accessed 10 July 2015.,

Venture Minerals Riley Creek Mine
Impacts

The case brought by the conservation groups as reported in Australian Mining:
[W]as characterised as “frivolous”, with Justice Richard Tracey declaring that the environmental group had “failed to make good any of its grounds”, and should pay costs to the Commonwealth and Venture Minerals33

Also reported during May 2014 in Australian Mining
The Riley Creek mine will employ 60 people for two years, with a value of $80 million to the local economy, and will be used by Venture Minerals to fund a larger mine proposed near Mount Lindsay34

The Riley Creek mine has not been progressed for the following reasons reported in the Mercury:
Venture Minerals’ decision is motivated by continuing delays it has experienced through legal challenges and appeals brought by minority groups,” council chief executive Jeremy Kouw said.

“This is again evidence that as a state we have real issues with project approval processes which are sapping investor confidence.”

When the project received approval, iron ore prices were about $40 a tonne above what they are today. Venture said its pre-production work would stay so it could restart production if circumstances changed.35

22. News, ‘Venture pushes for mine challenge date’, 2 November 2013, The Advocate website, accessed 10 July 2015.
23. Federal Court of Australia, Tarkine National Coalition Incorporated v Minister for the Environment [2014] FCA 468 (15 May 2014)’, Federal Court of Australia website, accessed 10 July 2015.
24. H. Kempton, ‘Venture Minerals shelves its plans for an iron ore mine at Riley Creek’, The Mercury website, 19 August 2014.
25. Breaking News, ‘Federal Court dismisses the Tarkine’s appeal against Riley Creek Mine approval’, 26 June 2015, Save the Tarkine website, accessed 10 July 2015.
26. News, Iron ore mine to go ahead in Tasmania after legal delay, 16 May 2014, Australian Mining website accessed 14 July 2015.
27. Ibid.
28. News, Venture Minerals shelves its plans for an iron ore mine at Riley Creek, 19 August 2014, website accessed 14 July 2015.
Rob Messenger