Burrup Bill introduced in State Parliament

December 19, 2002 - Greens (WA) MLC Robin Chapple today moved to make any further transfers of Crown land on the Burrup Peninsula subject to approval by both houses of Parliament.

“We are putting the developers and the Government on notice that we do not consider any of the major issues surrounding industrial “development' on the Burrup Peninsula to be resolved. The Government has chosen to bulldoze aside the concerns of the Aboriginal Traditional Owners, the local residents, and the national and international community. We have been left with no choice but to take this step.'

Transfers of land vesting from unallocated crown land are an essential step in providing security of tenure for proponents. With Parliament now in recess until March 2003, there is no possibility of the bill being debated or resolved until this time.

“If the British Parliament were tonight considering the destruction of Stonehenge to make way for an important freeway, there would be international condemnation. If the Government of Egypt made an economic case for quarrying the Great Pyramids, the whole world would react with revulsion. I am not exaggerating when I say that this is the scale of cultural and ecological vandalism that we are considering today.'

“We need to rethink the wisdom of building a substantial industrial estate in the middle of the greatest collection of Aboriginal rock art in the world. This bill gives us the mechanism for such a rethink. No further allocation of Crown land without the considered deliberation of the Parliament.'

Mr Chapple keenly awaits the debating of the bill early next year.

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