'Wild Rivers by stealth' claims emerge

In doing so, its director has raised the prospect of Wild Rivers legislation being returned “by stealth”.

Mr Cripps put out a weekend media release saying he understood Northern Development Minister Anthony Lynham had last week handed a draft Development Protocol to IFED representatives, which he described as “scuttling any chance of the project progressing”.

“Representatives of IFED have described the draft protocol as a document that would ‘positively discourage investment’, imposing regulatory requirements and costs with no link between environmental approvals and required water allocations,” he said at the time.

When contacted by the Queensland Country Life, IFED chairman Keith DeLacy was tight-lipped, saying only that the company was in “sensitive and productive discussions” with the government.

“You can ask me 41 other questions but that’s all I’m going to say,” he said.

IFED’s concerns about private negotiations being aired in public before discussions were finalised were similarly expressed by Dr Lynham.

A spokeswoman for the minister said the government was working closely with IFED to see what support they could offer to make their integrated agricultural project a reality.

“We are a job-focussed government and we support any project that strikes the balance between economic development, community benefit and environmental sustainability,” she said.

“This is yet another example of the opposition having no respect for private information.”

Mr Cripps said it appeared intervention had brought the government back to the table, which was “a good thing”.

“If they’ve felt pressure from proponents, including the Etheridge shire, I welcome that," he said.

“The Environmental Impact Statement process needs to happen.”

The project wants to develop a 65,000-hectare vertically-integrated farm and processing precinct sustained by irrigation water from the Gilbert River catchment, incorporating sugar, guar bean production and grazing alongside co-located processing facilities.

The IFED project was granted "co-ordinated project" status by the Newman government and its next step was to complete an environmental impact statement (EIS).

“The Etheridge Integrated Agriculture Project (EIAP) represents a significant opportunity for economic development, not just for the Etheridge shire but north Queensland as a whole, including significant job opportunities for indigenous people in the region,” Mr Cripps concluded.

Gamarard Consulting principal and indigenous man Anthony Penrith backed up these comments, saying he understood a “non-binding” MOU had been delivered to IFED proponents last Thursday, which would impose additional regulatory requirements over and above the Coordinator-General’s terms of reference for the EIS.

He said the MOU didn’t guarantee the water allocation needed to satisfy and attract investors, putting in jeopardy an agreement with IFED for upwards of 400 jobs for indigenous people.

“This could be 400 families off the dole, paying taxes, providing food for their children, sending them to school, purchasing much-needed supplies for their family, and possibly buying into the Australian dream, a home,” Mr Penrith said.

“As Indigenous people we could not have associated with any project that would wreck our lands or our people.

“This project is not situated on one of the former declared Wild River systems, so we see this as a dangerous expansion of the Wild River doctrine which again is stopping development of the north.”

Mr Penrith called on indigenous leaders, particularly Member for Cook Billy Gordon, and Katter’s Australia Party to campaign against the “re-introduction of Wild Rivers doctrine” that would “consign families to the scrapheap”.

He added that the EIS was a standard process everyone should be allowed to go through.

“It goes out to public comment and people have an opportunity to make recommendations. That’s all we’re asking for.”