Passing of NSW Biodiversity Conservation Bill and Local Land Services Amendment Bill

Yesterday (Thursday 17 November 2016) the NSW parliament passed the Biodiversity Conservation Bill and Local Land Services Amendment Bill. The Acts will repeal the Threatened Species Conservation Act, Native Vegetation Act and parts of the National Parks and Wildlife Act. Whilst many elements of the old Acts will be carried over, the new Acts will change the way in which impacts to native vegetation are regulated in rural and urban areas, as well as introducing new opportunities for conservation through stewardship arrangements. Critical elements to the Acts will be contained in the Regulations, such as the definition of ‘Serious and irreversible impacts’ and the threshold for requiring offsets. The new Acts won’t take effect until these Regulations have been adopted. Eco Logical Australia understands that there will be stakeholder engagement when drafting the regulations, and that the government has a timeframe of July 2017 for the Acts to fully operational.

Eco Logical Australia will keep abreast of the development of Regulations. If you would like to know more about the legislation and its implementation please contact our Approvals and Planning Services Lead, David Bonjer, on (02) 8536 8668 or at davidb@ecoaus.com.au.