Put Conservation First

Will you sign for conservation?

Close to 40 years ago, a group of activists put their bodies on the line to prevent a road from being built through the Daintree Lowland Rainforest, stretching from Cape Tribulation to Cooktown. The Bloomfield Track was eventually built; however, as a result of the protests—known collectively as the Daintree Blockade—the Wet Tropics rainforests of North Queensland were inscribed on the World Heritage List. Many people assumed Australia’s most biodiverse rainforest would be protected forever.

“Within the region, the Daintree River to Cape Tribulation coast has a special status. It is the last surviving, essentially intact, tropical lowland rainforest in Australia. It has one of the highest diversity of plant families anywhere in the world. Its rarity, fame and superlative beauty make it one of the foundations of the region’s economy. It is the only place in the world where two World Heritage Areas meet.” – IUCN

Unfortunately, plans have resurfaced for further development in an area most Australians believed was secure. Now, the threat is even more significant—renewed calls for a bridge over the Daintree River and an $18.75 million commitment from the federal government to supply reticulated electricity to the Daintree, at a time when there is no funding for conservation.

This is one place where conservation should come before development, yet there is no shared vision for the Daintree’s future.

The Australian Government once protected the area by supporting its World Heritage area. However, despite this, construction has already commenced—at a cost of $18.75 million—on a renewable energy microgrid, complete with a solar farm, battery, and hydrogen plant to connect the Daintree to reticulated electricity. While renewable energy is a much better option than the originally proposed gas-fired power plant, it does not address the biggest issue: infrastructure like this will inevitably lead to increased pressure for urban development in the Daintree. There are also calls for a bridge or second ferry to increase vehicle access to the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

In the mid-1980s, a pro-development state government inappropriately rezoned leasehold and freehold land in the Daintree Lowlands Rainforest, enabling a developer to subdivide it into 1,136 blocks. This has led to inappropriate road building, clearing, and development of high-conservation-value rainforest. In the 1990s and 2000s, the Douglas Shire Council and the Queensland and Australian governments all contributed financially to purchasing or ‘buying back’ freehold land to prevent development and reverse the impacts of subdivision. For 25 years, this has been complemented by acquisitions made by local and national non-profit conservation organisations. These newly proposed developments would encourage further rural residential development and must be stopped.

What We Are Asking For

We’re calling on the Douglas Shire Council, Queensland Government, and Australian Government to review current proposals for further development in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest and work together with all stakeholders to develop a conservation management plan for the area.

• Pressure is growing to develop parts of the Daintree Lowland Rainforest. In 2022, the Morrison Government committed $18.75 million to supply reticulated electricity to the Daintree. Pressure has also been mounting for a bridge to be built across the Daintree River.

• The exceptional biological and scientific values of the Daintree Coast mean conservation and the protection of these values for future generations must take priority.

• A thriving tourism economy is also founded on conservation and presentation.

• The Daintree Lowland Rainforest in North Queensland is the oldest rainforest on the planet, with an unbroken evolutionary history stretching back over 120 million years to the first flowering plants. Let’s not change that now.