The Greens say current environmental laws in Tasmania do nothing to protect critical habitat and threatened wildlife, and if voters want to change they need to act at the polls.
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They are calling for Liberal and Labor to support strengthened environmental laws, and if they fall short, to give the Greens a vote to achieve a balance of power and the ability to fight for it.
As part of their announcement to overhaul environmental laws, the party rolled out Tasmanian biologist Nick Mooney, who said a higher priority should be placed on environmental issues in the upcoming election.
"We all rely on a healthier environment," he said.
Environmental impacts of developments taken into account under state law
Mr Mooney said there was a mood in Tasmania to ignore the precautionary principle, which was driving the need for a review of its environmental laws.
The precautionary principle is applied at law and encourages a cautious approach to development or innovation, specifically where scientific knowledge is lacking and possible harm could be caused.
Mr Mooney stressed that the environmental impact of small but particularly large developments in Tasmania should have a stronger focus in law.
For example, he said, developments should not be allowed to progress where threatened species exist.
"Some other countries, Portugal, South Africa...they do not put a windfarm where a threatened species like an eagle is located. It is not rocket science," Mr Mooney said.
"Many of the laws have to be looked at...we are making big decisions on forestry and windfarms [but] there is a fundamental lack of data and study involved in it, and they still pass the test of the regulator."
He said lack of research and collection of data was also a big problem for the environment.
"There are many animals that we assume are okay but..they could be threatened, we just don't know it," Mr Mooney said.
"Unless something is endangered and known to be so, nothing happens. There needs to be laws that are applied with a much deeper understanding of what you are affecting with these developments."
He said Tasmania was 'relatively pristine' and the state needed to protect that.
Greens to release more detail on environmental laws in election campaign
Greens candidate Tabatha Badger said the party would release its specific policies as the campaign progressed.
She said not other party would move forward on environmental protection.
"Labor and Liberal have done nothing with the environmental laws. If anything they have gone backwards in the last ten years. It is beyond time we step up and have Greens in the balance of power to strengthen environmental laws."
