Land Clearing

27 July 2006

Environment groups today called for a new Environmental Impact Study (EIS) to be completed for the Ord River Stage 2 - the largest proposed land clearing operation in Northern Australia. Recently the Western Australia Government announced that tenders were open for the destruction of 16,000 hectares of native vegetation to make way for an extension to the existing Ord River Irrigation Area in the Kimberley region.

“We know that the first stage of the Ord River irrigation scheme has caused significant negative environmental impacts,” said Dr Barry Traill, The Wilderness Society’s Woodlands Ecologist. “Heavy use of agricultural chemicals on some crops, rising water tables, salinisation, siltation, and loss of habitat are all legacies of Ord Stage 1. Further large scale clearing of the Kimberley’s special native plant communities can only make the situation worse.”

“The approach to Ord Stage 2 by the government risks replicating the massive land degradation problems now driving the environment and farmers to the wall in the south of the continent. Western Australia undertook massive land clearing earlier last century without proper studies. We should learn from the mistakes of the past before considering any such project, and go into these industrial-scale projects with our eyes wide open.” said Chris Tallentire, Director of the Conservation Council of WA.

“The current tender to release land for clearing follows the Wesfarmers/Marubini/Water Corporation plans for the development of Stage 2 for broadacre irrigation of sugar cane. An EIS was carried out at that time and the EPA responded in 2001.” said Maria Mann, Coordinator of Environs Kimberley.

“The current proposal relies on the old out-dated EIS and approval. In the intervening 5 years we have accumulated a much better scientific understanding of the impacts of intensive irrigated agriculture and the importance of maintaining biodiversity. We call on the WA Government to conduct a new EIS at the highest level,” said Executive Director for the Australian Conservation Foundation, Don Henry.

“A new EIS is definitely needed to closely examine the likely impacts of the planned large scale clearing for broadacre irrigated agriculture.” said Peter Robertson, Campaigns Coordinator for the Environment Centre of the Northern Territory. “The previous assessment was made on the basis that sugar cane was the main crop, and this is likely to no longer be the case.”

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