Government unveils draft South Australian assessment bilateral agreement

The Commonwealth Government has released a draft of the new South Australian Assessment Bilateral Agreement for public consultation. The agreement will allow South Australian processes to inform the Commonwealth assessment of the environmental impacts of certain controlled actions, reducing the need for parallel assessments.

Snapshot

• The previous assessment bilateral agreement, signed in 2014, ceased in 2021.
• In recent years, South Australia has updated key legislation that was covered under the previous assessment bilateral agreement.
• The draft assessment bilateral agreement will replace the lapsed document and reflect developments in South Australian law.

The Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water is inviting public comments on the draft South Australian Assessment Bilateral Agreement (Draft Bilateral Agreement). The Draft Bilateral Agreement will apply to the assessment of the environmental impact of certain actions that, under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act) would require Commonwealth approval (Controlled Actions).

Under the Draft Bilateral Agreement, the South Australian assessment of the environmental impacts of certain Controlled Actions will be accredited to inform the Commonwealth assessment, potentially eliminating the need for two separate assessments for the same action.

The previous bilateral agreement with South Australia was signed in September 2014 and ceased in 2021.

The Draft Bilateral Agreement has been updated to reflect recent legislative changes in South Australia, most notably the amended Mining Act 1971 (SA) and associated regulations, and the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 (SA).

The Draft Bilateral Agreement does not provide for the accreditation of assessment processes under any additional South Australian legislation. It also does not incorporate any of the expected amendments to the EPBC Act, in part because the assessment processes will remain largely unchanged despite the Nature Positive Reforms.

The release and finalization of the Bilateral Agreement is likely to be a welcome development for project proponents in South Australia.

To note

• Consultation is open until 2 September 2024
• Submissions can be made in the DCCEEW Consultation Hub website
• The Draft Bilateral Agreement is available online