Abbot Point dredge decision a step closer
The federal environment minister will make a decision on whether to allow dredge spoil to be dumped on Queensland wetlands without a separate report on the potential impacts.
Greg Hunt is in the process of deciding whether to approve a Queensland government proposal to dump three million cubic metres of dredged spoil onshore at Abbot Point.
The dredging is being carried out to expand the coal port into one of the largest in the world.
The state put forward the plan after a backlash over an already approved proposal by proponents to dump the spoil in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
On Tuesday, Mr Hunt's department released a document saying the new proposal will be assessed on "preliminary documentation" rather than a separate Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
The document doesn't say whether more information will need to be supplied by proponents.
Felicity Wishart, from the Australian Marine Conservation Society, says Mr Hunt has short-changed the reef and the nearby Caley Wetlands by not requiring proponents to carry out a separate EIS.
"For someone who has talked about being committed to the highest, most stringent and vigorous assessment he has lowered the bar," she told AAP.
"There are a whole lot of questions about this new proposal because they want to dump dredge spoil in a wetland which is nationally significant."
"We were assured that it would be dumped on land, now we're being told it's going to be dumped on wetland - they're not the same thing."
Ms Wishart says the wetland is a natural filter for the reef and is home to endangered species.
Dredging associated with the Abbot Point coal terminal expansion is due to begin in March 2015, and proponents still have the option to dump the spoil offshore.
Comment has been sought from Mr Hunt and Queensland's deputy premier.
