Kakadu in Danger:
Australian Government betrays the world

by Peter Mac

The Jabiluka mine comprises a huge scar on the pristine landscape of the 
Northern Territory's magnificent Kakadu National Park. The mine has 
desecrated the sacred site of the local Mirrar people, and will produce 
uranium ore with potentially damaging implications for the park 
environment.

Continuation of the project would involve the ore being processed at the 
nearby Ranger mine, which would of necessity remain in use indefinitely, 
rather than being closed down as previously envisaged. The joint working of 
the two mine sites would necessitate the construction of a major new road 
connecting them. The Kakadu National Park has been placed on the World 
Heritage List of places of major natural importance. Yet the World Heritage 
Commission last week succumbed to pressure from the Howard Government to 
refrain from listing the Park environment as endangered by the mining 
activities.

Earlier this year specialist advisers on World Heritage from Australia and 
elsewhere were unanimous in their finding that the mine would jeopardise 
the Park environment and would justify it being listed by the World 
Heritage Committee (WHC) as "in danger".

They pointed out that 13 out of 17 crucial issues with regard to the mine 
had still not been addressed by the Government and the mining proponents.

Nevertheless, the World Heritage Bureau (the peak advisory body to the WHC) 
failed to endorse unequivocally its specialist organisations' findings that 
the Park was endangered by the mine.

Despite all the evidence to the contrary, the WHC itself went on to declare 
that the mine would not immediately endanger the Park. The sole dissenting 
voice within the Committee was the representative of Cuba.

The WHC has something of a reputation for dodging controversy. It has 
traditionally exhibited extreme reluctance to list sites as endangered — 
or even as significant —  where there is strong local opposition to the 
listing proposal. 

But this in itself is not enough to explain the extraordinary action of the 
WHC in declaring that the Park is not threatened by the mine.

Instead, the answer lies in the activities of the Australian Government. 
Throughout the protracted negotiations leading up to the WHC findings, the 
Government carried out an intensive and extremely well-funded lobbying 
campaign to support the mine proceeding.

This was effective at the crucial early stage of discussions on the issue 
by the Bureau, which decided to break with its normal convention of open 
discussion by Bureau members and instead held private talks with the 
Australian Government with a view to formulating recommendations to the 
WHC.

The resulting recommendations from the Bureau, which were notably equivocal 
on the endangerment issue, were criticised by many environmental 
organisations. The Wilderness Society commented:

"It appears that the enormous political pressure brought to bear by the 
Australian Government on Bureau members through its multi-million dollar 
lobbying campaign is working. It will punch a fatal hole in the integrity 
of the World Heritage Convention if it is shown that political pressure and 
deals can override science in global forums."

The "hole" in the integrity of the WHC is now very large indeed. At future 
Jabiluka mine shareholder meetings, the Wilderness Society and other 
organisations will be using the reports of the specialist advisers to the 
WHC to argue against the decision of the WHC itself.

This is not the first time the Australian Government has betrayed the world 
on a crucial environmental issue.

Two years ago, when it was becoming increasingly clear that the whole world 
weather pattern was changing drastically because of the emission of 
greenhouse gases, the Howard Government forced the international conference 
on climate change at Kyoto to accept Australia's position as the only 
participating nation whose emission of greenhouse gases would actually 
increase under the Kyoto agreement.

On this occasion also, and again at vast expense to the Australian 
taxpayer, the full weight of the Government was used to bring about a 
decision favourable to big mining companies and industrialists.

In so doing the Government not only contributed to the worsening of climate 
change but also weakened the resolve of the international community to 
tackle the problem.

The effects of greenhouse gases are now becoming starkly evident. The world 
weather pattern is changing, with annual average world temperatures rising, 
and with terrible outcomes such as multiple forest fires and the death of 
vast areas of the world's wonderful coral reefs. (See page 5.)

There is evidence of significant melting of the polar ice caps, which if 
continued would result in the flooding of vast areas of the world's low-
lying countries.

Most of the land area of Bangladesh and all the surface area of many of the 
islands of the Pacific would disappear, with consequent mass death from 
drownings and starvation.

None of this matters to the representatives of big business such as Prime 
Minister Howard or members of his Government. After the WHC finding was 
announced, then Deputy Prime Minister Tim Fischer sneered that Kakadu was 
"overrated" anyway.

The sole concern of the Government is that the profits of the big 
corporations should not be placed on the endangered list because of 
environmental issues.

It is becoming increasingly evident that the real danger to the world's 
natural environment lies in the infinite greed of capital and its 
representatives in government.