WA's environment tsar has backed business concerns that excessive State and Federal green tape is delaying mining projects, saying more should be done to streamline cross-border environmental approvals.
The comments by Environmental Protection Authority chairman Paul Vogel come a day after Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke surprised many in the industry by delaying an expected approval for Toro Energy's Lake Wiluna uranium development for three months.
Dr Vogel also hit out at criticism by the Conservation Council of WA, who said on Tuesday that Mr Burke's decision was prudent in light of WA's "dangerously deficient" approvals process.
"They (the Conservation Council) have a right to protest about uranium mining but to attack our process I think is clutching at straws and dangerously deceptive," Dr Vogel said.
"And I would make that comment about any environment group, or company, or peak industry group that is going to make bald and unsubstantiated claims - I am going to retaliate."
The Conservation Council argues the EPA's earlier report on Toro's proposal did not "provide sufficient information for the Commonwealth to make an informed decision" on issues such as water supply or uranium tailing dams, a position rejected by the EPA chief.
"There is a healthy tension in the approvals process," Dr Vogel said. "Part of our job is facilitating ecologically sustainable development."
Dr Vogel said that WA's approval for Toro - begun in 2009 - had involved lengthy public consultations, conditions on the development and an appeals period overseen by an independent South Australian uranium expert, and he was unclear what extra information Mr Burke would require to make a decision.
Mr Burke said he was committed to streamlining approvals, but not at the expense of the environment.
Dr Vogel's comments come hot on the heels of the collapse of talks at the Council of Australian Governments for Canberra and the States to cut environmental approval duplication.
They also follow criticism from Woodside Petroleum chief executive Peter Coleman about regulation that provided no net environmental benefit, yet added cost and uncertainty to timelines.
Dr Vogel said he was disappointed by the collapse of national talks on extending the current parallel State and Federal environmental assessment processes to the ministerial approval level.
"The environmental impact assessment process in WA is internationally and nationally recognised as being a very good one," Dr Vogel said. "So I was looking forward to the fact that we could actually reduce some of the duplication and uncertainty for business, which would lead to a substantial streamlining here without compromising environmental standards."
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