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ASIC asked to investigate Sweetman Renewables over woodchip contract claims
February 02, 2022
The Nature Conservation Council has referred Sweetman Renewables to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) after the company apologised for claims it had a $90m woodchip export contract with Japanese energy company Sinanen. Several advertorials published on investor website Stockhead claimed the company...
Read More$50 million koalas package ignores the biggest threat — habitat loss
January 29, 2022
The Nature Conservation Council welcomes the Federal Government’s commitment to spend $50 million on koala research and care, but the package fails to address the biggest threat the species faces. Habitat loss from logging and land clearing is the number-one threat to koalas and...
Read MoreTaxpayers fork out for most expensive water ever
January 18, 2022
The Federal Government today committed Australian taxpayers to effectively pay a record $20,000 per megalitre to recover water in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. [1] Federal Environment Minister Keith Pitt has announced the government will allocate $126 million for water efficiency infrastructure to recover possibly just 7.4 gigalitres of water, with only 6.3 gigalitres to be returned to the environment “That means every megalitre of water saved will cost taxpayers $20,076,” Nature Conservation Council Acting Chief...
Read MoreLabor and the crossbenchers key to overturning reckless floodplain water regulations
December 20, 2021
Labor and the crossbenchers should disallow the ecologically unsustainable and socially inequitable floodplain harvesting regulations that outgoing Water Minister Melinda Pavey rushed through last Friday. [1] “These rotten regulations, virtually Ms Pavey’s last act as Water Minister, will leave a wretched legacy if they are allowed to stand,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Jacqui Mumford said. “Ms Pavey promised to listen to river...
Read MoreWelcome, Environment Minister James Griffin, keep up the good work
December 20, 2021
Nature Conservation Council Acting Chief Executive Jacqui Mumford said: “I heartily welcome the appointment of James Griffin as the state’s next Environment Minister and urge him to continue to build on the solid foundations laid by his predecessor. “Mr Griffin clearly has a strong interest in the portfolio. In...
Read MoreChristmas comes early for Port Macquarie koala colony
December 17, 2021
Koala lovers are celebrating today after almost 200 hectares of prime habitat near Port Macquarie were put beyond the reach of property developers. NSW Environment Minister Matt Kean announced this morning the government, with a $3.5 million contribution from Koala Conservation Australia, had bought a 194ha block of forest next to Lake Innes...
Read MoreLicensing floodplain harvesting by Christmas would be reckless
December 16, 2021
Water Minister Melinda Pavey’s announcement she intends to issue floodplain licences before Christmas [1] recklessly disregards most of the 25 recommendations and 14 findings of yesterday’s parliamentary committee report. [2] “Ms Pavey hardly had a moment to consider the Floodplain Harvesting committee’s report before declaring in the media that...
Read MoreEPA gives Vales Point licence to pollute for another five years
December 15, 2021
Vales Point power station will continue to be a major source of respiratory illness for children on the Central Coast after the Environment Protection Authority granted the facility a further five-year exemption from air quality standards. While the EPA did marginally tighten standards in the licence, the changes will...
Read MoreCommittee recommendations would improve water management, sustainability and Indigenous rights
December 15, 2021
The NSW Government should implement all the recommendations of the Legislative Council’s Floodplain Harvesting report to ensure the sustainable and prudent management of one of the state’s largest water resources. [1] “We welcome the key findings of the report and urge the government to adopt all 25 recommendations,” Nature Conservation Council Chief Executive Jacqui...
Read MoreConservation groups take aim at Redbank biomass proposal as it goes to court
December 14, 2021
The Land and Environment Court begins a five-day hearing from today (Tuesday) into whether the Redbank power station in the Hunter Valley can substitute wood for coal and be subject to no further assessments. The Nature Conservation Council of NSW, North East Forest Alliance and the Australian Forest and Climate Alliance are scheduled to give...
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