Australia okays Abbot Point port expansion

Australia today approved a controversial coal port expansion to support projects, like Indian mining giant Adani’s 6.5 billion dollar Carmichael mine in Central Queensland, despite opposition from green groups which claim it will impact the fragile Great Barrier Reef.

The Abbot Point (location map in PDF) port involves dredging 1.1 million cubic metres of spoil near the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which will then be disposed off on land.

The approval lists a number of strict conditions that the project must fulfil before going ahead, including how and where the sediment can be moved.

The decision comes two months after the government approved Adani’s plan to build one of the world’s biggest mines.

Abbot Point is located about 25 kilometres north of Bowen on the north Queensland coast, about 400 kilometres from the vast coal reserves of the Galilee Basin.

The expansion will create a huge port capable of handling up to 120 million tonnes of coal per annum and would enable coal to be shipped from proposed mining projects in the Galilee Basin, like Adani’s Carmichael mine.

Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt issued the approval only after re-engineering reduced dredging by 97 per cent from the original proposal, according to his spokesman.

'All dredge material will be placed onshore on existing industrial land,' the spokesman said, adding the project has been approved in accordance with national environment law subject to 30 strict conditions.

HBL