2026-02-25
Following news that the controversial plan from the owners of Claravale Farm and Station will not be required to undergo assessment under federal environment laws, Senator Hanson-Young said:
“The Minister said he would be tough on deforestation, yet he has quietly allowed the bulldozing of habitat almost ten times the size of Sydney’s CBD to go unassessed. This is yet another case of the Minister not walking his own talk.
“Despite this company having previously been in the spotlight for allegations of unlawful clearing, they escaped prosecution and now have a free pass to finish the job without any federal oversight.
“We cannot keep letting big mining and agriculture companies break the law and get away with it. It makes a mockery of our laws and the nature they are intended to protect.
“Bulldozing thousands of hectares of habitat for the expansion of big cotton is deeply concerning, not only for the futures of the 18 threatened species that call this tropical savanna home, but for the precious water resources that must be protected from over-extraction.
“In the Northern Territory anything goes when it comes to approving destruction and handing out mega water licenses for free - federal assessment must be a safeguard against this. I urge the Minister to take another look at the impacts and reassess this decision.