The petition of the residents of the State of Queensland draws to the attention of the House, the grounding of the Shen neng 1 and the subsequent decision to use the Great Sandy Marine Park (GSMP), as a place of refuge under S 10 & 11 of the Protection of the Sea (Powers of Intervention) Act 1981.

The incident is a pertinent example of the potential for the place of refuge (GSMP) to be considered the ideal safe anchorage for future coal export shipping incidents along the Queensland coastline, which is contrary to the acceptable use of a designated Marine Park. 

The Queensland government has declined to participate in a strategic assessment under S 146 of the EPBC Act 1999 for a determination of the likelihood of significant impacts from coal and gas export, to the following Matters of National Environmental Significance (MNES): World Heritage Area Values, National Heritage Values Wetlands of international importance (Ramsar Wetland values), listed threatened species and communities, listed migratory species and the Marine environment.

We the undersigned residents therefore request that the House makes a decision to participate in the said assessment, to ensure that the unfortunate incident is not repeated and that the risks from coal and gas export to the regional economic, ecological and social values derived from the MNES, are identified and mitigated accordingly.