The Tasmanian Government welcomes the World Heritage Committee’s (WHC) acknowledgement of progress towards implementing their requests for the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area in its draft decision released yesterday.
There are however some elements of the draft decision that do not reflect the latest information, or will be impractical to implement.
The concerns expressed about the Tourism Master Plan (TMP) in the draft decision relate to previous drafts of the TMP, and are not warranted.
The feedback as published in the Draft Decision was taken into account in the final version of the TMP and the Government believes that the TMP addresses the concerns of the WHC.
In relation to development in the TWHHA, the Government is also concerned that the WHC has published a Draft Decision that is impractical, and potentially is outside the functions of the WHC.
In response to this, the Tasmanian Government will be working with the Australian Government in recommending to the WHC a realistic, practical and common-sense alternative.
Subjecting all developments, potentially including any works by the Parks and Wildlife Service in providing facilities, maintaining existing infrastructure, or safety for visitors, to another layer of approvals does not acknowledge that we have an approved management plan in place and a robust assessment process at both state and commonwealth level.
The Australian Government already reports to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre on projects that may cause a significant impact to World Heritage properties, such as the Tasmanian Wilderness, on a quarterly basis. This more than fulfils the requirements of the World Heritage Committee.