Australian Conservation Foundation draws links between Pardoo Beef’s clearing permits and political donations

A State Government agency and a prominent Pilbara cattle station have rejected explosive claims that clearing permits were granted across hundreds of hectares of bilby habitat as a result of political donations. The Australian Conservation Foundation said the WA government in 2016 had rejected Pardoo Beef Corporation’s application to clear land on bilby habitat next to an ecologically sensitive wetland. However, it approved a similar application a year later following political donations and lobbying. Pardoo, owned by wealthy Singaporean Bruce Cheung, grows cattle fodder for its herd of wagyu cattle. According to the documents, Pardoo has cleared 840ha of Greater bilby habitat immediately adjacent to the internationally significant Eighty Mile Beach wetland, south of Broome. Part of the cleared land comprises 450ha, which Pardoo unsuccessfully applied to clear in 2016. Following an appeal in 2017, the WA government approved a similar clearing proposal. Freedom of Information documents obtained by ACF show Pardoo donated more than $183,000 to political parties in the 2016-17 financial year, including $30,000 to the WA National Party on the same day the application for clearing was re-submitted — while the Liberal-National government was in power in 2016. It also donated $3000 to the WA Labor Party in June 2017, a week after representatives of the company met with then-new Labor Premier Mark McGowan and the day after meeting with the Environmental Protection Agency to discuss long-term plans at Pardoo. Prior to that, Pardoo had not made political donations, it has confirmed. “Political donations help corporations gain greater access to decision-makers and we see this access turn into influence,” said ACF’s democracy campaigner Jolene Elberth. A spokesman for the Department of Environment and Water Regulation said it gave no consideration to — nor was aware of —matters such as donations to third parties in assessing a clearing permit application. The spokesman said the Environmental Protection Act 1986 sets out the matters that the chief executive can have regard to in making a decision on an application. The decision and the assessment are publicly available. “The department is impartial, and its decision-making is without bias,” the spokesman said. The Greater bilby is listed as a threatened and vulnerable species under WA and Commonwealth legislation. “Over the last 200 years bilbies have suffered a significant decline in population, they now occupy only 20 per cent of their former range,” said Environs Kimberley director Martin Pritchard.