Queensland land clearing is undermining Australia’s environmental progress

Hugh Possingham and colleagues write in The Conversation (22.2.16) that native vegeatation land clearing in Queensland has tripled in the last five years. This presents the Palaszczuk government with another legislative challenge to negotiate through the delicately poised parliament.

‘Land clearing has returned to Queensland in a big way. After we expressed concern that policy changes since 2012 would lead to a resurgence in clearing of native vegetation, this outcome was confirmed by government figures released late last year.

‘It is now clear that land clearing is accelerating in Queensland. The new data confirm that 296,000 hectares of bushland was cleared in 2013-14 – three times as much as in 2008-09 – mainly for conversion to pastures. These losses do not include the well-publicised clearing permitted by the government of nearly 900 square kilometres at two properties, Olive Vale and Strathmore, which commenced in 2015.’

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