One stop shop won't work, Greens say

The Greens say a controversial port development in the Northern Territory is proof the federal government's proposed one-stop shop for environmental approvals won't work.

A Senate estimates hearing in Canberra on Tuesday heard an environment department investigation into Port Melville on the Tiwi Islands was sparked by a question from Labor senator Nova Peris last year, not the Northern Territory government.

"Obviously the whole one-stop shop is premised on everybody being really nice and telling each other all of the things they should know and we see example after example of that not happening," Greens senator Larissa Waters said.