ALCA calls for the immediate cessation of large-scale clearance of native vegetation in New South Wales
The NSW Government is proposing amendments to the Land Management (Native Vegetation) Code 2018. Our submission responds to those proposed changes.
The scale of clearing in New South Wales is among the highest in Australia. Between 2018 and 2022, more than 420,000 hectares of native vegetation were cleared. This level of clearing is a major contributor to biodiversity decline.
Current regulatory settings rely heavily on self‑assessment and voluntary compliance. This approach has not been effective in preventing unlawful or large‑scale clearing. Evidence from audits and environment reports shows enforcement action is rare, and there are also incentives to clear land before regulatory maps are finalised.
The proposed changes to the Code do not address the scale or urgency of the clearing problem, and government commitments to stop excessive land clearing have not yet been reflected in stronger regulatory settings.
NSW has committed, alongside other governments, to halt biodiversity loss and protect 30% of land by 2030, but NSW is currently well short of that target and relying on other states to make up the shortfall in its own contribution.
Our submission outlines recommendations to:
- Immediately stop large‑scale clearing of native vegetation, except in rare cases for critical public infrastructure with high‑integrity offsets.
- Replace self‑assessment and voluntary actions with independent, science‑based environmental assessments.
- Strengthen enforcement by increasing resources for compliance and penalties for illegal clearing.
- Make significant illegal clearing a strict liability offence to simplify enforcement.
- Urgently improve and finalise the Native Vegetation Regulatory Map to remove incentives for pre‑emptive clearing.
- Limit clearing approvals and certificates to a maximum of five years.
- Remove provisions that allow clearing based on landholder opinion rather than evidence.
- Reduce the maximum allowable clearing levels currently set in the Code.
