(1) Can the Minister confirm that a barge loaded with barrels of oil sank at Cocos Island in 2000; if so, can the Minister guarantee that the barge was seaworthy, given that it was a World War II landing barge.

(2) Was a permit issued to allow this vessel to operate loading and unloading cargo at Cocos Island; if so, (a) by whom; and (b) what investigations were conducted to determine its seaworthiness prior to the permit being issued.

(3) What action has been taken to recover the oil.

(4) Will the Minister investigate the process by which this barge was allowed to operate.

(1) An amphibious vehicle became partially submerged in the lagoon at Cocos (Keeling) Islands on 31 July 2000 while undertaking commercial operations ferrying cargo from a ship anchored offshore to the Island. The amphibious vehicle was subsequently towed onto land without damage to its cargo, part of which was a sealed shipping container loaded with sealed drums of waste oil.

The vehicle was a former United States Army landing craft recently modified to undertake cargo operations on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. These modifications were made in accordance with the construction requirements of the Uniform Shipping Laws Code, which specifies standards for smaller vessels, and the craft carried safety equipment required by the Code.

(2) Before the amphibious vehicle commenced cargo operations at the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, the owner requested the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) to conduct an independent assessment of the craft. AMSA reviewed the documentation related to the modifications to the craft and undertook inquiries to obtain an assessment of the safety equipment aboard the craft by Australian Federal Police officers stationed on the Islands.

AMSA concluded from the available information that the craft's stability characteristics and safety equipment conformed with the requirements of the Uniform Shipping Laws Code. On 28 July 2000, AMSA advised the owner and the Administrator on Cocos (Keeling) Islands that the craft could be permitted under specific conditions to conduct commercial cargo operations, pending survey.

(3) The sealed container loaded with the sealed drums of waste oil remained on the amphibious vehicle while it was submerged and was recovered when the craft was towed ashore without damage or spillage of any cargo.

(4) No. The process followed before the amphibious vehicle commenced operations at the Cocos (Keeling) Islands is outlined in (2) above.