Environment Ministers
sign a Draft MOU
The
Queensland and Federal Governments have signed a Draft memorandum of
understanding (MOU) giving the state more powers to conduct environmental
assessments and approvals for major projects.
In March
2013, a
senate committee (under the former Labor Government) confirmed the Federal
Department of Environment was backing away from handing over responsibilities
for biodiversity approvals to the States.
The Draft
MOU (which has not been publically released) addresses ''the key principles of maintaining environmental standards,
streamlining processes, the removal of duplication and the offer of federal
staff to be embedded with the state if required''.
The Draft
MOU is being review by Prime Minister Tony Abbott for approval and the changes
will need to be passed through Federal Parliament and the Senate. The aim is to
achieve a one-stop shop to reduce red tape and provide certainty to business
while maintaining the rigorous federal environmental standards.
This would
include:
·
Creation of
a single approvals process for environmental assessment and approvals under the Environmental Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act via the state system, as part of long-term
agreements with each state and territory.
·
Development
of the ability and incentive for local government to be part of the
one-stop-shop single assessment process.
·
Creation of
a single lodgement and documentation process. The single documentation and
assessment process could also be expanded to make a single entry point and
one-stop-shop for all government approvals across portfolios.
State Environment Minister Andrew
Powell says there will be less duplication and quicker decisions - but
Commonwealth oversight will not disappear.
Some of the things proposed include
embedding Commonwealth officers into the Qld Co-ordinator General's Department.
Approval Processes for Coal and
Mineral Exploration
There have been recent changes to the approvals process for coal
and mineral exploration allowing for earlier engagement and faster approvals.
Minister for Natural Resources and Mines Andrew Cripps said the
new process had the potential to halve the time taken for companies to be
granted exploration permits, while maintaining rigorous environmental, native
title and land access assessments.
Mining companies no longer need to wait until an exploration
permit is granted before engaging with landholders about their proposed exploration
activities.
Exploration activities still cannot begin in an area prior to a
permit being granted.
Applications to explore will still be subject to the same
stringent assessment process to ensure they meet strict environmental,
technical and commercial viability, community interest, native title and land
access requirements.
A granted exploration permit is not a right to mine, and the
Queensland Resources Council estimates that approximately only one in every 200
granted exploration permits ever goes on to become a mine.
Under the new process:
· companies
will now be formally advised within 90 days of lodgement whether their proposed
exploration works program for a project has been approved or rejected.
· For
successful applications not subject to native title, once a work program has
been approved and an environmental authority has been issued, a permit can be
granted after annual rent has been paid.
· For
applications subject to native title, it means companies can start required
native title processes and engage landholders about conduct and compensation
arrangements a lot sooner.
· These permit
applications can then be finalised within 30 days of the native title process
being concluded.
More
information about exploration in Qld is available at www.dnrm.qld.gov.au or at www.mines.industry.qld.gov.au
Fees for Petroleum and Gas
In
another example of the Qld Government’s approach to regulation and fees: The Qld
Government will amend the Petroleum and Gas (Production and Safety)
Regulation 2004.
Key
changes include:
·
Replacement of the requirement for industry to report quarterly
with a new annual reporting requirement
·
A capping mechanism for upstream operators to ensure revenue
collected from some fee categories is not in excess of the calculated costs to
conduct compliance activities
·
Amending the Category 10 fee to three-tiers and applied based on
the size of the LPG delivery network. Small and medium sized operators will
have a flat fee relative to their size and larger operators will remain at a fee
per unit basis with a maximum charge retained
·
Abolition of the Category 9 fee category for the LPG delivery
network
·
Removal of the fee for biogas users and exemptions for some biogas
producers
More
information is available at: www.mines.industry.qld.gov.au/safety-and-health/petroleum-gas-safety-health-fee.htm
