Law change to head off anti-mine activists

The federal government will legislate to ensure environmental activists can't challenge major projects.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott

The government will legislate to ensure environmental activists can't challenge major projects. (AAP)

The federal government will repeal a section of environmental law that allows "activists" to stop major projects.

The decision follows the Federal Court's move to overturn approval of Indian mining giant Adani's $16.5 billion Carmichael coal mine in central Queensland.

"This government will repeal section 487.2 of the EPBC (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation) Act which gives activists the standing to sabotage decisions," Prime Minister Tony Abbott told parliament on Tuesday.

The change was approved by federal cabinet on Monday night and went to the coalition party room on Tuesday.

It is expected to be introduced to parliament this week.

The $20 billion investment in Carmichael is expected to create 10,000 jobs.

Attorney-General George Brandis said the laws as they stood allowed "radical green activists to engage in vigilante litigation" to stop important job-creating projects.

"(It) provides a red carpet for radical activists who have a political but not a legal interest, in a development to use aggressive litigation tactics to disrupt and sabotage important projects," he said.

"The activists themselves have declared that that is their objective."

Senator Brandis called on Labor to support the bill.

Manager of opposition business Tony Burke urged the government to table legislation on Tuesday so Labor could scrutinise it.

Phil Laird from the Lock the Gate Alliance said the law change would also ensure farmers could not challenge coal mine approvals.

"The laws are there for a reason, to level the playing field between landholders and the community and the big mining companies," he said in a statement.

Liverpool Plains farmer Andrew Pursehouse said the government had approved three open-cut mines on some of the best food-producing land in the country.

"Now they want to limit who can go to court to challenge it," he said.


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Source: AAP


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