The Australian Government yesterday introduced legislation to reform the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) to Parliament. This is a pivotal moment that will determine whether the country will strengthen its failing nature laws, or weaken them further.
After decades of paralysis, these reforms are a once-in-a-generation opportunity to help turn the tide on extinction and ecosystem collapse.
“Every delay and bad call costs species, ecosystems, and communities that depend on a healthy environment,” said Australian Land Conservation Alliance CEO Jody Gunn. “This is our chance to get it right. Australia’s national environment laws haven’t been overhauled in more than 25 years, and the decisions made now will shape how we protect nature for decades to come.”
The centrepiece of the independent Samuel Review - the creation of enforceable national environmental standards - has thankfully been kept in the proposed laws. New provisions have been created to consider ‘critical habitat’ for threatened species and ‘unacceptable impacts’ from proposed developments.
Unfortunately, the proposed laws concentrate dramatic, wide-ranging discretionary powers into the hands of the Minister of the day. These powers are not subject to sufficient public scrutiny, and they intrude heavily upon the much-promised independence of the national Environment Protection Agency. Widespread land clearance, the greatest single threat to Australian nature, has again not been systemically addressed in the laws.
Furthermore, the promised ‘no-go zones’ for development (areas of such high value for nature and people that their destruction should not be contemplated), are riddled with exemptions.
The proposed laws also create new workarounds that could fast-track major fossil fuel projects.
"The new laws must be designed to protect and restore nature, not just make it faster for projects to be approved,” said Jody.
ALCA has long urged EPBC Act reform that matched the urgency of the nature crisis, including a strong and independent Environmental Protection Agency; transparency, accountability and restraint on Ministerial override powers; and significant federal investment in nature to complement legislative change.
"Our sector should not have to keep compensating for the EPBC’s shortcomings on the ground. Nature laws must be strong enough that the government itself prevents environmental loss. Conservation organisations shouldn’t have to spend extra time, effort, and money to make up for a law that isn’t doing its job.
Parliament has now referred the Bills to a Senate Inquiry which will report in the new year. The Australian Land Conservation Alliance will continue to advocate for strong, enforceable laws that put nature at the heart of decision-making.
"We’ll be looking for laws that deliver real protection, not loopholes, weak standards, or unchecked Ministerial powers.
“We can’t keep drawing down upon nature without consequences. These decisions will shape whether our children inherit a thriving natural environment or a legacy of loss.”
