The Australian Greens have thrown their weight behind a community funding campaign to save the WA Environmental Defenders Office after confirmation that all state funding will be terminated.

"The Greens strongly support the Environmental Defenders Office and we are joining with the community to support them after this disgraceful decision from the government," Senator Scott Ludlam, Australian Greens deputy leader said today.

We give notice that on the next day of sitting we shall move that -

The Senate notes:

1.    The concern of communities in South Australia and Western Australia about their land and water being threatened by shale and other unconventional gas mining.

2.    That landholders lack the legal right to refuse shale and other unconventional gas mining on their land.

3.    The scientific uncertainty surrounding the environmental and health implications of hydraulic fracturing ('fracking') for shale and other unconventional gas mining.

The Australian Government is prepared to abandon all responsibility for regulating the uranium industry, in direct contradiction to written commitments given by Environment Minister Greg Hunt.

In May 2013, then opposition environment spokesperson Greg Hunt said the Commonwealth would retain control over decisions involving nuclear matters and projects for which state governments are likely to have a significant conflict of interest as the proponent - both of which would cover uranium mining.

Senate Standing Committee on Economics - Treasury Portfolio - Budget Estimates
4 June 2013

Senator LUDLAM asked:

Senator LUDLAM: In the ABS publication Completing the picture: environmental accounting in practice, I draw from table 4.8 that the value of resource rents from subsoil assets is given as $44 billion in 2009-10, which is very large relative to the revenue that was eventually raised by the MRRT. Do you depreciate the market value of the mines themselves when calculating resources rent, as occurs with the tax?