Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment Regulations 2005 (No. 1)1 Select Legislative Instrument 2005 No. 167
I, PHILIP MICHAEL JEFFERY, Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, make the following Regulations under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Dated 21 July 2005 P. M. JEFFERY Governor-General By His Excellency’s Command IAN CAMPBELL Minister for the Environment and Heritage
1              Name of Regulations                 These Regulations are the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment Regulations 2005 (No. 1). 2              Commencement                 These Regulations commence on the day after they are registered. 3              Amendment of Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000                 Schedule 1 amends the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2000.
Schedule 1        Amendment (regulation 3)    [1]           After Part 2A insert Part 2B               Bilaterally accredited management plans Note   Under section 45 of the Act, the Minister may enter into a bilateral agreement with a State or self-governing Territory in relation to 1 or more of the following: ·      protecting the environment; ·      promoting the conservation and ecologically sustainable use of natural resources; ·      ensuring an efficient, timely and effective process for environmental assessment and approval of actions; ·      minimising duplication in the environmental assessment and approval process through Commonwealth accreditation of the processes of the State or Territory (or vice versa). Such an agreement may declare that actions in a specified class of actions approved in accordance with a management plan accredited in accordance with subsection 46 (3) of the Act do not require approval under Part 9 of the Act for the purposes of a specified provision of Part 3 (see the Act, subsection 46 (1)). 2B.01     Criteria for accreditation of management plans for World Heritage properties and National Heritage places          (1)   This regulation concerns the accreditation of a management plan for:                 (a)    a declared, or proposed, World Heritage property; or                (b)    a National Heritage place. Note   A bilaterally accredited management plan may allow for the declaration of actions that do not then need approval under Part 9 of the Act for the purposes of a specified provision of Part 3 — see subsection 46 (1) of the Act. The relevant provisions of Part 3 in relation to a World Heritage property are sections 12 and 15A, and in relation to a National Heritage place, sections 15B and 15C. Criteria for management plan          (2)   For paragraph 46 (3) (a) of the Act, the criteria set out in subregulations (3) to (5) are prescribed in relation to the management plan.          (3)   Development of the management plan must have included consultation with:                 (a)    the Australian community generally; and                (b)    any particular groups having a special interest in the property or place, or likely to be especially affected by a management plan for the property or place.          (4)   The public consultation mentioned in subregulation (3) must have included the release of a draft management plan for public comment and the allowing of at least 20 business days for the receipt of comment by the State or Territory organisation that is responsible for developing the plan. Note   Subsections 46 (2), 51 (2) and 51A (2) of the Act also set out requirements about accreditation of management plans. Content of the management plan          (5)   A management plan for a declared or proposed World Heritage property or a National Heritage place:                 (a)    must outline the process of public consultation that was undertaken in the development of the plan; and                (b)    must state the law under which the plan is in force; and                 (c)    must include a description of the property or place, including its boundary and the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values; and                (d)    must state what must be done to ensure that the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values are identified, conserved, protected, presented and transmitted to future generations and, if appropriate, rehabilitated; and                 (e)    must set out the means by which risk management of the property or place will be addressed, including:                           (i)    identifying the risks to the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values; and                          (ii)    providing an analysis of the potential effect of each identified risk on the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values, including an estimation of the nature, extent and likelihood of the risk; and                          (iii)    setting out risk management strategies to protect and conserve the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values; and                 (f)    must provide that adequate assessment of the impacts, on the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values, of any proposed actions provided for under the plan, or that may arise during the life of the plan, has been, or will be, undertaken by means specified in the plan; and                 (g)    must set out the means, any legislation other than the plan, and the processes, that:                           (i)    were used in assessing the impacts of actions that are provided for under the plan; and                          (ii)    are to be used in assessing the impacts of actions that may arise during the life of the plan; and                 (h)    must require that the impacts of any actions likely to have a significant impact on the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values have been, or will be, assessed by means that provide environmental assessment processes that meet the recommendations of regulations 3.03 and 3.04 and Schedule 1; and                  (i)    must provide that actions in relation to the property or place may be approved only in accordance with the plan; and                 (j)    must require a decision-maker to take account of the precautionary principle in making a decision in relation to the property or place; and                (k)    must set out the means, and any legislation other than the plan, that:                           (i)    enable the setting of enforceable conditions to ensure that the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values are conserved, protected, presented and transmitted to future generations and, if appropriate, rehabilitated; and                          (ii)    provide for any subsequent monitoring, auditing and enforcement of approvals and any conditions attached to an approval; and                  (l)    must set out means by which the plan will seek to prevent, or minimise the impacts of, any actions likely to degrade the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values, including actions leading to cumulative degradation; and                (m)    must state that actions that will have unacceptable or unsustainable impacts (in particular, actions that will have a significant impact on the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values) are inconsistent with the plan and cannot be approved; and                 (n)    must set out means for the plan to be enforced, including, in appropriate circumstances, the imposition of penalties upon a person taking an action that is inconsistent with the plan; and                (o)    must ensure that management actions for values that are not the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values are consistent with the management of the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values; and                (p)    must promote the integration of Commonwealth, State or Territory, and local government responsibilities for the property or place; and                (q)    must provide for continuing monitoring and reporting on the state of the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values; and                 (r)    must provide that the plan is to be reviewed at intervals of not more than 5 years. Criterion for law of State or Territory          (6)   For paragraph 46 (3) (a) of the Act, the criterion that the law of the State or Territory under which the management plan is in force (or is to be in force) must be capable of providing protection for the relevant World Heritage or National Heritage values of the property or place is prescribed in relation to that law of the State or Territory. Note
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