“Every five years, a group of independent experts, some of the most respected scientists in Eastern Australia, some of whom are with us here today, have access to the best tools available.
“They’re told to show us the full national picture of the health of our environment. Or, as one of the authors said, take a good look at ourselves.
“This report was handed over to the government last year. The former minister, Sussan Lawhe received it before Christmas but he chose to keep it hidden, closed until after the federal election. And when you read it, you’ll know why.
“But even though it’s a confrontational read, Australians deserve the truth.
“We deserve to know Australia has lost more mammal species to extinction than any other continent.
“We deserve to know threatened communities have grown by 20% in the last five years with places literally burned in danger by catastrophic fires.
“It simply came to our notice then the Murray-Darling fell to its lowest water level recorded in 2019 and that, for the first time, Australia now has more foreign than native plant species.
“Individually, each of these revelations is terriblebut only when you think about the accumulated impact do you begin to have a complete idea of the environmental decline. “