The Burnett River Dam: the politics of environmental management in Qld

Clearly the Minister had not critically considered the EIS of the proponent as it would have been obvious that the process was flawed.

Clearly the Minister had not considered principles of ecologically sustainable development as adherence to these principles has been denied by the Queensland Minister of Environment, Dean Wells.

And clearly the Minister did not consider any other information relevant because the information regarding the ecology of the lungfish was available and this identified that a dam would impact negatively upon the species. At the time the lungfish was, in fact, being considered for listing as a threatened species by his own department.

It is in this manner that significant environmental and water management is being conducted in Queensland. The process is devoid of any assessment or regulation by departments with the expertise to do so and there appears to be absolutely no audit process from the federal government to ensure the state adheres to its obligations.