The Business Council of Australia has outlined fresh concerns over the remit of a federal Environmental Protection Agency, after a Bill was introduced to parliament today.
If passed, the Bill will set up the nation’s first federal EPA – a body with the authority to issue stop-work orders and audit businesses.
In a statement today, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the new EPA would examine illegal land clearing and offset conditions as a priority, after an audit revealed one in seven developments could be in breach of offset conditions.
Ms Plibersek stressed the level of consultation that had been undertaken in preparation for the second tranche of Nature Positive, which was split in three as a result of business concerns relating to a lack of consultation.
The EPA is part of the second tranche of Nature Positive legislation, and was first detailed in April.
The Bill will include provision to increase maximum fines for environmental breaches to align with punishments for serious financial offences.
Courts will also be able to impose fines of up to $780 million or send people to prison for up to seven years for intentional breaches of environment law that are deemed “extremely serious”.
“We will fully deliver the third stage of reform as we work to make environmental laws less bureaucratic and fit for purpose,” Ms Plibersek said.
“We’ve already consulted almost 100 groups, held public webinars which 3,000 people have attended, and received around 2,500 submissions.
“We will continue this work to get the laws right – for the environment and for business.”
Ms Plibersek said the establishment of the EPA and Environment Information Australia – a separate body to oversee the coordination of and access to environmental data for business and the public – would deliver stronger environment protection powers, faster approvals, more information and greater transparency.
Today’s tabling was met with skepticism by the Business Council, with chief executive Bran Black casting doubt over the remit of the EPA – claiming it had the authority to be delegated the responsibilities of the elected minister.
“Many of the issues raised by business during the consultation process have not been taken up, and that concerns us,” he said.
“In practice the minister’s delegable power to consider important projects will be given to an unaccountable EPA, with the risk of downplaying a project’s broader economic and social benefits.”
The Bill was also greeted with cynicism by some environmental groups.
While the Business Council’s concerns related to the potential for over-reach, the Lock the Gate Alliance alleged the new EPA would have “no influence over project decision making”.
“The Albanese Government has folded to the demands of the WA mining and gas sector and is squandering an opportunity to finally bring Australia’s environment laws up to a modern standard that the community expects and was promised,” Lock the Gate national coordinator Carmel Flint said.
“The failure to act now means that it’s business as usual for 59 coal and gas expansions that are currently being assessed under national environment laws – a law that sees 99% of projects approved.”
Nature Positive has been a significant point of contention on both sides of the Nullarbor.
In his flying visit to Perth earlier this month, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stressed the government’s decision to delay the contentious third tranche of reform demonstrated he was listening to WA business.
He suggested the draft reform would not be available to the public before the next federal election.
Speaking in Perth last week, Hancock Prospecting projects chief executive Sanjiv Manchanda said the government had been unwilling to consult directly with industry on its reform and called for Nature Positive to be scrapped and started again.