The Major Projects legislation has been widely condemned by community, residents and environmental groups in Tasmania. Now the state government has confirmed they will table the Major Projects legislation this week in Parliament (possibly as early as August 18).

Community group Planning Matters Tasmania (PMT) is calling on Tasmanians to contact the ALP to urge them to oppose the legislation.

Take action

PMT have created an online option to help Tasmanians contact Labor members, and urge them to live up to their campaign motto – ‘put people first’.

Please email and/or phone Labor members using the tool found here – it will only take you a few minutes to show you care about fairness and due process in big development decisions.

You can visit the PMAT website here for details on all the issues about the unfair Major Projects process and please take action to help push Labor to prioritise people over private profit.

 

Why oppose the legislation?

Community groups across the state have been clear in their opposition to the MPB, highlighting their key concerns, including:

  • a loss of community rights to appeal bad development decisions;
  • limits on meaningful community input to major projects assessments;
  • the sidelining of the trusted and independent Tasmanian Planning Commission;
  • the side-stepping of parliamentary oversight for State significant projects;
  • almost any project would be eligible to be declared a major project e.g. all current controversial projects across Tasmania could foreseeably be pulled into this process – Cambria Green on the east coast, Westbury prison, Fragrance skyscrapers in Hobart and Launceston, Marinus, Lake Malbena Helicopter proposal and other developments in our National Parks and Reserves and World Heritage Area, and cable cars proposed for kunanyi/Mt Wellington, Mt Roland and Cataract Gorge.; and
  • the Planning Minister has unchecked power to declare a development a ‘major project’ thereby removing it from the usual planning process.