Swaths of native forest near Great Barrier Reef set to be bulldozed

Federal officials plan to back the destruction of almost 2000 hectares of pristine Queensland forest in a move that threatens the Great Barrier Reef and undermines a $500 million Turnbull government rescue package for the natural wonder.

Old growth forest in the vicinity of Kingvale Station,
near rivers that flow into the Great Barrier Reef.

A draft report by the Department of the Environment and Energy recommends that the government allow the mass vegetation clearing at Kingvale Station on Cape York Peninsula. The area to be bulldozed is almost three times the size of the combined central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne.

Read the story by Nicole Hasham from The Age - “Swaths of native forest near Great Barrier Reef set to be bulldozed.”

Biggest polluters get clear path to hike emissions under plan

Australia’s biggest polluting companies would more easily jack up their greenhouse gas emissions under a Turnbull government proposal that critics say undermines multi-billion dollar efforts to tackle climate change.

The government has proposed loosening the safeguard mechanism,
which limits greenhouse gas emissions from big polluters.

The proposed change was prompted by feedback from businesses, including the petroleum industry, which said emissions rules did not adequately allow their businesses to grow.

The Department of the Environment and Energy last week released a consultation paper outlining planned changes to the "safeguard mechanism", which is supposed to ensure pollution reductions bought through the government’s $2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund are not offset by emissions increases elsewhere in the economy.

Read Nicole Hasham’s story in today’s Age - “Biggest polluters get clear path to hike emissions under plan.”