Donations To Restore Great Barrier Reef Could Dry Up If Land Clearing Continues, Says Donor

Private investment in work to restore the Great Barrier Reef is likely dry up if the Queensland government fails to pass tighter land-clearing laws, warns Australia’s biggest environmental philanthropist.

David Thomas, who has donated $30m and bequeathed another $30m to environmental causes in Australia, told Guardian Australia that state and federal governments’ drive for private investment in Great Barrier Reef water quality projects would be unsuccessful if rampant land clearing continues.

“The Australian and Queensland governments want private philanthropists to help meet the enormous cost of sediment reduction, recently estimated at $7.8bn,” said Thomas. “But it doesn’t make sense for governments or anyone else to invest in this sort of remediation if land clearing continues unchecked.

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A state science department study on land cover released earlier this month found 296,000 hectares of land was cleared in 2014-15, more than a third of it in Great Barrier Reef catchments. The Palaszczuk government is seeking to pass legislation that would tighten regulations around land clearing in Queensland. It is being debated in the state parliament on Thursday and the vote is likely to depend on two independents, Peter Wellington and Billy Gordon.

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/aug/18/donations-to-restore-great-barrier-reef-could-dry-up-if-land-clearing-continues-says-donor