Rosalie Woodruff MP | Greens' Marine Environment spokesperson
The Premier downgraded his assessment of the salmon industry’s practices as being “very good” in Parliament today. Not even the Liberals can continue to claim Tasmania's salmon farming industry is “world’s best practice”.
Tasmanians are becoming increasingly aware of the massive, and likely permanent, damage to Macquarie Harbour from intensive fish farming, and the legal action being taken against the government for regulatory mismanagement. No one's being fooled anymore.
The East Coast community have overwhelming rejected the Okehampton Bay salmon farm approval, and the corrupt Marine Farm Planning Review Panel processes used to justify it.
If any Liberal MP had attended the community meeting at Triabunna on the weekend, they might understand a downgrade in language is nowhere near enough.
Premier Hodgman talked up the jobs in Tasmania's salmon industry. Every single one of those jobs is at risk because of his government's failure to regulate the industry.
The Liberals continue to push the expansion of the industry at any cost to the environment, other industries and local communities.
Tasmania needs long-term, sustainable jobs that a well regulated industry provides. Without a healthy marine environment, salmon farming will be a boom-bust industry that is destined to collapse.
The Greens support the community's call for government to move the industry to closed loop processes on land, or offshore. The whole community needs to be involved in decisions about where and how the salmon industry operates.
Tasmania needs a salmon industry that protects the environment, doesn’t damage our clean green brand, and assures jobs for the long-term.