Last week’s ‘environmental streamlining’ deal between the federal and Queensland governments presents a grave threat to the Great Barrier Reef, according to the Australian Conservation Foundation.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Premier Campbell Newman last week signed a memorandum of understanding and released a press statement, quoting state governments “should be able to make environmental approvals on the Commonwealth’s behalf”.

“The agreement will seriously weaken protection for the Great Barrier Reef and the rest of Queensland’s environment,” ACF CEO Don Henry said.

“The national government should have the final say on proposed developments that might affect matters of national environmental significance.

“People should be absolutely clear: this agreement would allow the Queensland government to make environmental approvals that would normally have been made by the Commonwealth.

“ACF sees this as a direct threat to the Great Barrier Reef. Successive Queensland governments have shown they cannot be trusted to make decisions that are in the interests of the nation.

“Previous Queensland governments have tried to allow oil drilling on the Great Barrier Reef, sandmining on Fraser Island, logging in the wet tropics rainforests and a massive development on Great Keppel Island on the Barrier Reef.

“In all these cases, the Commonwealth government has had to step in to protect the environment and the national interest.”

The ACF says it has written to the World Heritage Committee, alerting the UN body to the fact that Australia’s national government is planning to hand over approval responsibilities to the Queensland state government, and advised the UN that the Commonwealth would no longer be able to assure the World Heritage Committee that the Great Barrier Reef’s outstanding universal values were protected.