Page 2516 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 15 November 1989
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specific investigation or assessment; and
(d) be empowered to report in such a manner and make such recommendations as it sees fit in terms of necessary modifications, relocations, prohibitions, or requirements for further study (such as inquiries, environmental impact statements, public environmental reports) and, where further study is required, the Minister responsible for development shall not permit the project to proceed until that study is complete; and
(3) pending the establishment of a permanent council, the Minister responsible for the environment appoint a Interim Environmental Council.
The Chief Minister's paper and drafting instructions on planning, environment, heritage and appeal matters are pending. I hope that this suggestion of mine will be seen as an interim arrangement, that it will be tried and the bugs ironed out, and then possibly become part of that legislation.
On 25 October Mr Whalan and some of his senior staff provided me with a briefing on the environmental issues involved in the development and future use of the Revlon site at Hume. In the course of that briefing we discussed the general question of environmental safeguards in relation to the development of individual industrial, commercial and office projects and the need to establish formal mechanisms to protect the interests of potential developers as well as the natural and built environments.
The main priorities I see in reaching such a balance are: firstly, that Canberra must remain well placed to attract suitable businesses and industries which will contribute to the local economy and local employment; secondly, that, in any preliminary negotiations between the ACT Government and potential developers about the nature and location of a project, both parties should have a clear and full knowledge of the environmental protection requirements and the community's expectations in relation to the potential impact of such a project; thirdly, that the process of evaluating the environmental impact of a project should commence as soon as possible after a proposal is made for the development of a site but, where negotiations about that site proceed, the commercial confidentiality of the negotiations should be preserved; fourthly, that the proposed project will not, in either its development or operational stage, threaten the environmental integrity of the ACT, whether defined in terms of the natural or built environments or the general quality of life.
Meeting these requirements while maintaining our competitiveness as a location for investment may be an
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