We are extremely disappointed with the approach taken to biodiversity protection and management throughout the Olympic Dam Expansion Environmental Impact Statement – whilst some token efforts have been made to reduce impacts, there is no commitment to voluntarily create any non-compulsory environmental benefits to offset the monumental and far reaching impacts of the mine.  This is completely at odds with the biodiversity commitments made by BHPBilliton in 2007/08, including the commitment to: “Manage our projects, operations and activities in a manner that supports and encourages positive biodiversity outcomes “ 

We welcome the opportunity to provide comment on the draft biodiversity strategy and wish to acknowledge the good intentions of the Australian Government, State and Territory Governments and the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council in developing it. Although we enthusiastically support the purpose of the strategy, in our view, the strategy shies away from opportunities to improve the way biodiversity is protected and managed in Australia. 

The Nature Conservation Society of SA has a number of key concerns with the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed temporary weir near Pomanda Island.  These involve matters of National Environmental Significance, the ongoing management of the Site as a Ramsar wetland, and the lack of accurate information on the period for which the weir will be operational.

We applaud the South Australian Government's proposal to create Marine Parks over 46% of the State’s marine waters.  However the initial definition of these parks and their outer boundaries offers no protection, and it is the next stage of this process, where the location of zones within these parks, and the activities allowed within these zones will be decided, that will ultimately dictate whether the these parks will “protect and conserve biological diversity and marine habitats” (excerpt from Primary Objectives Marine Parks Act 2007).