Is Tony Abbott's Australian administration the most hostile to his nation's environment in history?
In Western Australia, endangered great white sharks are being slaughtered. In Queensland, dredging spoil is to be dumped on the Great Barrier Reef. In Tasmania, ancient forests – harbouring some of the planet’s tallest trees – are in danger of being stripped of their World Heritage listing.
Australians could be forgiven for wondering if the federal government they elected last September is the most conservation-hostile in living memory.
Critics warn that moves by Tony Abbott and his Environment Minister, Greg Hunt, will not only degrade the country’s most outstanding natural assets, but make Australia an international laughing-stock. The UN has already threatened to list the Great Barrier Reef as “in danger” when its World Heritage watchdog committee meets in Qatar in June.
Compounding the right-wing government’s apparent disregard for Australia’s unique environment, say conservationists and scientists, is its resistance to any meaningful action to tackle climate change.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/is-tony-abbotts-australian-administration-the-most-hostile-to-his-nations-environment-in-history-9107534.html
The answer is "YES!" Even those of us who feared what an Abbott government would do to the environment are shocked by just how little they care about anything - except for mining, fracking, big corporations, and - of course - Rupert Murdoch. They may well turn out to be a one-term government, but the irreparable damage they could do in just three years is horrifying.
Nationwide protests are being planned for next month - "March in March" - against the government; possibly a record in the western world, just six months after they were elected. It's hard to know whether they're blind, stupid, or just plain mad; maybe it's all three, but they're on track already to be the worst government in this country's history. Not to mention an international embarrassment.
This is what happens when the Tea Party comes to power.
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