This information relates to the 2022 Federal Election and may no longer be current. 

Greens Policy Platform – latest announcements​

Protecting the Environment and Animals

The Greens’ plan to to stop big corporations trashing nature and agricultural land

Our environment is in crisis. The Great Barrier Reef is dying, the Murray Darling Basin is collapsing, and as our native forests are being torn up, the precious wildlife that call them home are being pushed to extinction. We must act now. 

The Liberal and Labor parties take millions in donations from corporations who are damaging the environment. Whether it’s coal & gas fracking, logging, or big irrigation corporations – they have too much power, and do too much damage. 

Unlike the Liberal and Labor parties, we don’t take donations from big corporations. The Greens understand that if you protect the environment, you can create a strong and sustainable future for all of us. 

We will back new environmental laws to stop corporations trashing our environment, put in place recovery plans for threatened species and protect jobs and businesses that rely on our environment.

First Nations people have been caring for Country from time immemorial. This deep knowledge and connection to Country must be respected, and programs empowering First Nations people to care for the land should be well-funded. 

Working hand in hand with First Nations people, the Greens plan will protect where we live, the water we drink, and our wildlife. We’ll create hundreds of thousands of jobs in habitat restoration and clean energy, and we will fund it by making the big polluters pay more tax. 

Did you know:
The last time the Greens were in balance of power, we negotiated for $1 billion dollars in funding for our environment. Imagine what we could do with more Greens in parliament.

Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, When we protect the environment, we protect our future.

A Green Australia

Pollution, deforestation, and corporate greed are pushing our natural world to the point of collapse. Without urgent action, the Great Barrier Reef and Murray Darling Basin are at risk of dying - taking a myriad of unique wildlife with them. 

2000 native species are at threat of extinction. 

The Greens plan includes:

  • Stop the extinction crisis through setting a goal of Zero extinction by 2030 and investing in a mass greening and restoration program, to ensure we are protecting habitats for our native animals and plants 
  • Green Australia by investing $24.4 billion over the next decade, including by restoring wildlife habitat, planting 2 billion trees by 2030 and reestablishing green space in our cities, regions and suburbs
  • End native forest logging to help reduce fire risk, and transition workers into sustainable plantation forestry
  • Save the Great Barrier Reef with grants to improve farming practises to stop runoff, stopping damaging maritime projects, and banning offshore dumping to protect our oceans 
  • Protect our natural environment and wildlife from land clearing, pollution and destruction by strengthening Environment Protection Laws and creating an independent Watchdog to enforce them
  • Make our rivers swimmable by 2030, including Adelaide’s Torrens River, Melbourne’s Yarra, and Canberra’s Lake Burley Griffin, so we can create new jobs and boost tourism 
  • Reverse government funding for Hells Gate Dam, Urannah Dam, and Emu Swamp Dam and Pipeline Projects. We will also reinstate the National Water Grid Advisory Body that the Nationals intend to abolish. 
  • Save the Murray Darling from corporate greed through water recovery targets and water buybacks
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, Rangers that can harness thousands of years of knowledge

Care for Country

First Nations people have cared for lands and waters for tens of thousands of years, but since colonisation, we’ve disregarded traditional forms of land management, causing environmental breakdown, extinctions, and a massive loss of biodiversity and wildlife.

Only last year, Rio Tinto destroyed the 46,000-year-old, culturally significant rock shelters in Western Australia's Pilbara.

The Greens plan includes:

  • Recognise First Nations’ people as custodians of the land. Rangers already protect 46 per cent of our National Reserve System, and when First Nations people are able to care for Country they report better mental and physical health, and strengthening of culture. 
  • Increase funding to the Indigenous ranger program to make use of millenia of knowledge while creating long-term sustainable jobs
  • Expand Indigenous Protected Areas, returning land and protecting nature and the cultural values of their Country for future generations
  • Strengthen laws to protect First Nations cultural heritage, knowledge, and intellectual property so big corporations can’t continue to destroy it in search of profits. 
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, Let's eat fresh, locally-grown and sustainable

Sustainable Farming

Broken and inadequate incentives from the federal government have pushed farmers to the brink, accelerated unsustainable practises, and caused a three-fold crisis for our climate, our biodiversity and our soil health. Organic, biodynamic and regenerative agriculture can improve farming land’s health and resilience against extreme weather events, while keeping farms economically viable and environmentally sustainable. But we need investment that is targeted, accessible and ongoing. 

A small handful of corporations control the world’s food industry, dictating what farmers can grow and how, leaving consumers with almost no choice

The Greens plan includes:

  • Restore the Carbon Farming Futures grants
  • Create a sustainable agriculture research centre, to develop and deploy green alternatives for farmers, to accelerate the green transition
  • Reform organic labelling and support organic certification, protecting producers and ensuring consumers are properly informed 
  • Build a local hemp, cannabis and seaweed farming industry, creating thousands of sustainable agriculture jobs
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, It's time to end animal cruelty

No More Animal Cruelty

More and more people are committing to ending animal cruelty. Yet, each day, animals are made to suffer in the name of gambling, entertainment and food. We’ve seen the horrific reality of life in the greyhound racing industry, live exports, and factory farms. Political donations from these industries have meant that Liberal and Labor are committed to keeping the cruel practises going, but there is a better way. 

One horse dies every three days on Australian race tracks

The Greens plan includes:

  • Enact strong, national laws to end animal cruelty, and protect the welfare of animals
  • Ban the live export of livestock for slaughter, consumption or profit
  • End inhumane, intensive factory farming with a just transition for workers employed in those industries
  • Shut down the gambling-fuelled industries of horse and greyhound racing, and end the export of greyhounds for commercial purposes, including for breeding and racing
  • Tackle the cruel global shark fin trade by banning the import and export of shark fins
  • Establish an Independent Office of Animal Welfare 
  • End federal exemptions used by the states for new lethal shark control measures and fund $50 million over ten years to supercharge research and development of non-lethal shark control measures that can replace nets and drum lines. 
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, Let’s protect our oceans from plastic

Plastics and Packaging

We consume too much plastic and too much of our waste isn’t recyclable. Overconsumption of materials is contributing to global warming, depriving future generations of resources, and polluting the planet.

And most plastic waste does not make it to the recycling centre, or even the landfill. This plastic — carried by rivers, wind, and animals often finds its way to the sea.

8 million tons of plastic pollution enter our oceans every year

The Greens plan includes:

  • Provide $1bn for a nationwide compostable processing scheme, supporting local councils to build industrial compostable facilities
  • Legislate a national approach to phasing out key single-use plastics by 2025
  • Legislate a national approach to container deposit schemes
  • Support a Global Plastic Treaty
  • Mandate national packaging targets in law 
  • Invest $500 million over five years into infrastructure and programs to reboot recycling
  • Invest $50 million in waste avoidance and reduction research
  • Support the Right to Repair to minimise e-waste
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, Forests should not be a commodity. They're life.

Protect lutruwita / Tasmania’s forests

Lutruwita/Tasmania is home to millions of hectares of native forests full of unique beauty and ecology that is the envy of the world. It’s critical that we care for Tasmania’s wild places, to protect our climate and prevent irreversible extinctions.

Despite recommendations from the Australian Heritage Council that takayna / Tarkine be listed for protection, previous governments have rejected this advice.

The Greens plan includes:

  • Invest $1 billion over 10 years to create Ecosystem Restoration Fund
  • Nominate World Heritage listing for takayna / Tarkine
  • End the Tasmanian regional forest agreement
Photo of a smiling person. Text reads, We must protect our oceans and coastlines

Healthy Oceans, Coastlines and Reefs

Our oceans, coastlines and reefs, are under serious threat from climate change. We must act if we are to protect our marine environment and ensure that First Nations people are able to continue their stewardship and leadership in protecting and caring for Country and the biodiversity of our coastal areas. There is no excuse for our oceans, communities and coastlines to be put at risk for the sake of profit-driven coal and gas industries. 

This ocean wisdom has helped First Nations Peoples manage coastal resources sustainably for millennia. 

The Greens plan includes:

  • Continue to fight for healthy oceans and coastlines, supporting local communities, tourism and small business. 
  • Ban offshore exploration and seismic testing. 
  • Expand the network of Marine Protected Areas. 
  • Commit $50 million to wetlands and coastal restoration. 
  • Commit $20 million for Sea Country Indigenous Protected Areas. 
  • Extend the ban of super-trawlers to include 95 metre vessels. 
  • Campaign for and support golden kelp being listed as a threatened ecological community with a full recovery plan 
  • Appoint a Great Southern Reef Envoy in Canberra to promote the values of and threats to the Reef and the need for critical future funding support, working with coastal communities to assist with the impacts of climate change 

Together, we’re powerful.

We have a plan to reduce the cost of living, make housing more affordable, tackle the climate crisis, and make sure everyone is looked after.

We'll take on the big corporations, stop them ripping you off, and and tax them to fund the things that everyone needs. The Greens are fighting for you.