Queensland a bad risk for environmental investment by the Commonwealth Australian Conservation Foundation 340 Gore street, Fitzroy, 3065. Ph: (03) 9416 1166 Fax: (03) 9416 0767

Queensland's share of environmantal funding from the Commonwealth's billion dollar Natural Heritage Trust should be withheld if the Borbidge Government converts threasehold land to freehold, the Australian Consentaton Foundation said {on May 9}. Executive Director of the ACF, Mr Jim Downey said that following the attempted amendment of Queensland legislation to allow the wholesale freeholding of leasehold land, the Foundation will urge Environment Minister Senator Hill to withdraw Queensland's environmental funding under the National Vegetation Initiative. "The mass upgrading of leases in Queensland, or any State, would create a new array of environmental problems that would cancel out any potential benefits that the National Heritage Trust could make to environmental repair efforts", Mr Downey said. The Queensland Government should not receive taxpayers funds for environmental protecton with the one hand, while with the other they create the conditions for an environmental disaster." The ACF predicts that the Queensland Govemment's moves to convert leases to freehold is the first indication of a nationwide push by States to radically change Ausbalia's system of land management as a way to extinguish native title under the proposed ten-point plan. "In addfflon to extinguishing native title, Queensland's freeholdlng proposals would allow more land uses in areas already damaged by sheep and cattle grazing, and would remove the government's ability to protect the environment by using lease conditons". The CSIRO estimated in 1995 that land clearing rates are twice as high on freehold land than on leasehold land. as freeholding removes land from environmental regulaton in Queensland", Mr Downey said. "Queensland already has the highest land cleanng rates and the worst land clearing controls in Australia Freeholding leases will sign the death warrant for the habitats that exist on that land." "Why should the Queensland Government receive public funds to protect vegetation when their policies and practices do exactly the opposite?". Mr Downey said.