Tanya Plibersek snubbed Bob Brown while visiting Tarkine area of Tasmania

Former Greens Party leader Bob Brown was given the cold shoulder by Australia’s environment minister after the two ran into each other at the same restaurant.

Labor’s Tanya Plibersek was touring Tasmania last week to ‘consider the environmental impact on this special part of Australia, understand the cultural and heritage significance, and to hear the views of the local community.’

But taking to Twitter on Friday, Mr Brown shared a photo of himself at a café in Tullah, two hours west of Launceston, and complained that Ms Plibersek had snubbed him.

‘Last night, Australia’s Environment Minister Plibersek dined with senior mining officials not Bob Brown & environmentalists, two tables away,’ the Bob Brown Foundation account tweeted.

‘The Minister declined an invitation to see rainforests with Bob today. An absolute low in Australian environmental history.’

Bob Brown (centre) shared this photo in which Ms Plibersek is seen dining with a group of men just over his shoulder (pictured)

Mr Brown said she refused his offer to tour the rainforest with him 

According to Tasmania’s Department of State Growth the pristine Takyna/Tarkine area of northwestern Tasmania contains the largest area of cool temperate rainforest in Australia and a multitude of Aboriginal heritage sites.

But the area is also rich in minerals and is one of Tasmania most ‘critically’ important sites for the mining and forestry industries which bring in billions in revenue.

Mr Brown is a long-time resident of Tasmania and his Bob Brown Foundation promotes environmental awareness – including pushing for the Tarkine to be World Heritage Listed, which would prevent mining.

Ms Plibersek said as part of her two day tour of the Tarkine she ‘met with workers from a zinc and copper mine that’s been operating in the area for over 85 years.’

‘The mine is seeking federal government approval for a new dam. I take these decisions seriously.’

The Chinese owned MMG heavy metals mine at Rosebery is seeking approval for a 285 hectare tailings dam.

Ms Plibersek (pictured) will need to make an opinion on whether to back the Chinese-owned MMG mine building a tailings dam in the pristine Tarkine area of Tasmania

In July this year, the Bob Brown Foundation argued in court former environment minister Sussan Ley’s decision to allow for work to commence at the site was not authorised under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.

The Federal Court ruled in his favour that Ms Ley did not take into account the area is the habitat of Tasmania’s rare masked owl.

Ms Plibersek said on Friday she is carefully considering her decision. 

‘I’ll carefully consider what I’ve seen and heard in making a decision, as I am required to do by law. For now, I have to be careful about what I say publicly, because any suggestion I have prejudged a decision could see it challenged in court,’ she said.