Environmental Protection (Efficiency and Streamlining) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2025
Bill Story
The journey of this bill through Parliament, including debate and recorded votes.
Introduced the bill to streamline environmental regulation by creating ERA codes for lower-risk activities, simplifying the progressive rehabilitation and closure plan framework, and implementing a single integrated tourism permit across protected areas.
“This bill will support the Crisafulli government's commitment to protect the natural environment by improving the regulatory framework to achieve long overdue administrative efficiencies and streamlining.”— 2025-11-20View Hansard
Referred to Health, Environment and Innovation Committee
5 members · Chair: Robert Molhoek
The Health, Environment and Innovation Committee examined the bill and recommended it be passed. The committee's review focused on proposals to introduce General Environmental Duty (GED) Codes, streamline environmental approvals for environmentally relevant activities, and strengthen notification and restoration duties under the Environmental Protection Act 1994. The bill aims to provide clearer guidance on how individuals and corporations can achieve compliance with their general environmental duty.
Key findings (4)
- The bill proposes introducing GED Codes to outline how people and corporations can achieve compliance with the General Environmental Duty
- The Environmental Protection Act 1994 places core duties on all persons in Queensland, including the duty to prevent or minimise environmental harm
- The bill addresses duties to notify environmental harm and to restore the environment after incidents causing unlawful harm
- The Minister is already empowered to make codes of practice under the EP Act, and the bill builds on this framework
Recommendations (1)
- The committee recommends that the Bill be passed.
Plain English Summary
Overview
This bill streamlines environmental and resources regulation in Queensland by creating standardised codes for lower-risk activities, reducing duplicate approval processes, and extending prosecution timeframes for environmental offences. It also creates a single permit system for tourism operators working across multiple parks and forests, and improves underground water monitoring and reporting for mining-affected areas.
Who it affects
Mining and resources companies benefit from reduced red tape, tourism operators get simpler permitting across different land tenures, and rural bore owners gain better transparency and formal processes for requesting water bore assessments near mining and gas operations.
Environmental authority reforms and small scale mining
Creates new 'ERA codes' to regulate certain environmentally relevant activities through standardised conditions instead of individual environmental authorities. Small scale miners transition to these codes and no longer need to pay financial surety, while still being required to rehabilitate sites. Removes duplicative public notification for EIS terms of reference.
- New 'code-managed ERAs' allow certain activities to operate under standardised codes instead of individual environmental authorities
- Small scale mining activities transition from prescribed conditions to ERA codes, with financial surety requirements removed
- Public interest evaluation process removed for progressive rehabilitation and closure plans
- Time limits for prosecuting environmental offences extended from 1 year to 2-3 years
Tourism single integrated permission
Creates a single integrated permission allowing tourism operators to obtain one permit covering activities across protected areas, State forests, recreation areas and State marine parks. Implements the Destination 2045 tourism strategy commitment to reduce red tape for nature-based tourism businesses.
- Tourism operators can get one permit instead of multiple separate permissions for different land tenures
- Commercial activity permit terms for recreation areas increased from 3 to 5 years
- Permit conditions aligned across the Forestry Act, Nature Conservation Act and Recreation Areas Management Act
Underground water management
Changes underground water impact report cycles from 3 to 5 years and introduces baseline assessment strategies for areas where multiple resource operations affect groundwater. Creates new processes for bore owners to request assessments and improves reporting on make good obligations.
- Underground water impact reports due every 5 years instead of 3 years
- Bore owners can apply to have the chief executive direct a resource company to assess their bore
- Annual reporting required on progress of make good agreements for affected water bores
- New baseline assessment strategy required in cumulative management areas
Koala habitat enforcement
Gives conservation officers investigation powers to enforce Planning Act development offences that relate to koala habitat protection under the Nature Conservation Act. Previously, officers lacked clear authority to investigate these offences.
- Conservation officers can investigate development offences affecting koala habitat
- Officers can enter properties, require names and addresses, and seize evidence related to koala habitat offences