PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian resources sector has welcomed a report by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on the Environment that looks into the register of environmental organisations.

In March 2015, Environment Minister Greg Hunt asked the committee to inquire into and report on the administration and transparency of the register of environmental organisations, and their effectiveness in supporting communities to take practical action to improve the environment.

Nonprofit organisations currently receive government assistance through a range of tax concessions, including the ability to receive tax-deductible gifts and contributions and to be eligible for these endorsements. Organisations that undertook environmental work were required to be listed on the register of environmental organisations.

While the report recognised the important conservation work carried out by most registered environmental organisations, it also provided substantial evidence that a minority of the groups were misusing tax-deductible donations to fund or carry out activities that were unlawful, unsafe or politically partisan.

The report noted that a number of industry associations and companies, as well as the police forces of New South Wales and Victoria, submitted evidence of protest activity by registered environmental organisations that "involved serious risks to the safety of employees, volunteers and other members of the community".

The committee made several recommendations to strengthen the integrity and transparency associated with the tax treatment of donations made to environmental organisations, including the abolishment of the register for environmental organisations.

It suggested that the administration process for donations to environmental groups should fall within the purview of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

The Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) said that the recommendations made by the committee would help reassure the public that tax concessions granted to registered environmental organisations were being used for their intended policy purposes.

“In particular, it is appropriate that the ATO, rather than the Department of the Environment, administer the endorsement process, as the ATO has the expertise and resourcing to assess applications more efficiently and transparently,” said MCA CEO Brendan Pearson.

“It is also reasonable that environmental organisations seeking deductible gift recipient status must register as an environmental charity through the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission.

“This change would ensure that all environmental deductible gift recipients, and not just those who are also registered charities, are clearly prohibited from pursuing purposes that are illegal or party-political.”

Queensland Resources Council (QRC) CEO Michael Roche said on Thursday that it was high time the light was shone onto the "questionable activities" of some green activist groups.

“The myriad of evidence uncovered as a result of the inquiry reveals that some green activists – not all – may have been breaching the rules of the tax system,” said Roche.

“Our submission to the inquiry identified alleged breaches of the Tax Act under the rules governing those registered on the register of environmental organisations, on which almost all of the green activist groups are registered.”

Roche also welcomed the recommendation that each environmental deductible gift recipient organisation must spend at least 25% of its income on actual environmental remediation work.

“For too long some activist groups have been unfettered in diverting taxpayer-subsidised donations to campaigns against sectors such as resources and to litigation to disrupt and delay resource projects.”

The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (Appea) echoed Roche’s support of the recommendations, with CEO Dr Malcolm Roberts saying it was clear that a minority of groups had the primary objective of preventing resource development and have been engaging in or encouraging protest activities that were unlawful or illegal to achieve that end.

“Making such groups more accountable is long overdue.

“Recommending that the ATO should become more directly involved in administering the regime is a sensible way forward. The involvement of the ATO is central to maintaining confidence in the use of taxpayer funds and, as such, it is clearly well placed to be a lead agency in the process,” added Roberts.

“Appea endorses the principle that groups primarily engaged in frustrating the lawful development of publicly owned resources should not qualify as charities for the purposes of obtaining the taxpayer-granted privilege of tax deductibility status.”