The Australian Labor Government’s landmark environmental law reforms will pass the Parliament this week, heralding a new era for the environment and productivity in Australia.
More than five years after Professor Graeme Samuel handed down his independent review into the nation’s 25-year-old environmental laws, the government’s Environment Protection Reform Bill will be passed with the support of the Greens in the Senate.
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The Bill will amend the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, providing a balanced set of reforms that not only protect the environment for future generations but also deliver for business and the community by helping speed up decision-making for projects in key areas of national priority like housing, renewable energy and critical minerals.
Key environmental measures in the government’s amended Bill:
- For the first time, Australia will have a National Environment Protection Agency (EPA) – a strong, independent regulator with a clear focus on ensuring better compliance with and stronger enforcement of Australia’s new environmental laws.
- In another first, Australia will have National Environmental Standards, to ensure clear, strong guidelines to protect the environment.
- Higher penalties for the most significant breaches of environmental law, as well as environment protection orders for use in urgent circumstances to prevent and respond to major contraventions of the law.
- Removing and sunsetting the exemption from the EPBC Act for high-risk land clearing and regional forest agreements, so that they comply with the same rules and standards as other industries.
- Requiring proponents of large emitting projects to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and their emission reduction plans.
- Maintaining federal approval of “water trigger” coal and gas projects.
The news was welcomed by peak body the Clean Energy Council (CEC).
Clean Energy Council CEO Jackie Trad said that the passage of these long-awaited reforms to Australia’s environmental laws mean that rigorous assessment and approvals processes for renewable energy projects will be brought into the 21st century.
“The forthcoming passage of these reforms today will make meaningful progress to protecting the environment and deliver the clarity and certainty that industry needs for sustainable development,” Trad said.
“Once enacted, we look forward to seeing stronger results from minimising duplicative processes between the Commonwealth and the states, and delivering a fit-for-purpose, regional-based approach to environmental and biodiversity assessments, critical to delivering the new energy infrastructure we need.
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“Our sector exists because of the need to protect our environment, and not in spite of it. We look forward to working in a more streamlined way in delivering the clean energy rollout in the national interest.
“Congratulations to Minister Watt on achieving a major milestone for Australia’s environmental protection commitments, and for the essential renewables rollout that our nation needs, through his consultative approach to the negotiations.”
