Bureaucracy binge put wetlands at risk

Labor’s obsession with bureaucracy caused further damage to important wetland areas and delayed the clean up of the Pacific Adventurer oil spill, the LNP said today.

Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability Glen Elmes said the Australian Maritime Safety Authority’s report on the oil spill showed that too much paperwork and the bureaucratic nature of the EPA had delayed the clean up.

“Important wetland areas, particularly Spitfire Creek, were neglected and the oil spill damage compounded, because it took the EPA 12 days to permit clean up work to start,” Mr Elmes said.

“There are unconfirmed reports that the department advised leaving the wetlands clean up for later, while the spilled oil sank and mixed with sediment at the bottom of the water holes placing animals at risk.

“Was this because the oil slicks on the beaches were easier to see from news helicopters than the rapidly deteriorating wetlands?

 “Or was the clean up delayed because there was not enough trained staff on the ground?

 “This report states the ‘EPA appeared not to have sufficient number of trained personnel with understanding of the National Plan or relevant knowledge and skills to perform the tasks required’.

 “This is not surprising considering the EPA had one ranger per 11,283 hectares in 1999, but each ranger now must cover an extra 4200 hectares each.

 “The Bligh Labor Government continues to boost the ranks of George Street bureaucrats while cutting funding and staff actually on the ground doing the work.

 “Bligh’s bureaucracy binge and red tape will continue to place important Queensland environments at risk.”