By 1 September 2026, two key changes will have been made to the implementation of the Local Land Services Act 2013 (the LLS Act), in particular with respect to the regulation of native vegetation clearing in certain non-urban areas of…
ALERT: Suite of National Environmental Protection Standards Introduced under the EPBC Act
21 Aug, 2026
On 21 August 2026, the Federal Government declared the commencement of four new National Environmental Protection Standards (NES) under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act). The new NES comprise of the: National Environmental Standard (Matters of…
Managing Coastal Hazards: the Permissibility of Coastal Protection Works on Private Land
12 Aug, 2026
Protecting beachfront properties from exposure to coastal erosion and hazards is an ongoing problem across much of the NSW coast and made worse by climate change. Recently, the Land and Environment Court (Court) considered whether development consent should be granted…
Voluntary planning agreements are frequently used by planning authorities, such as local councils, as the legal mechanism by which proponents of renewable energy projects share the benefits of those projects with the local community. Planning agreements for renewable energy projects…
Part 7 of the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (BC Act) which governs biodiversity assessment and approvals, prevails over the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act) or any instrument made under the EPA Act, to the extent of any…
The Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure is exhibiting proposed amendments to the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021 (RH SEPP), and other legislation, described as providing clarity on existing provisions relating to: coastal subdivisions and boundary adjustments,…
The passing of the Environment Protection Reform Bill by the Commonwealth has introduced major changes to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act). As discussed in our earlier post here, these reforms include a new power…
On 28 November 2025, Parliament passed reforms to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act). This completes a suite of reforms that represent the most significant overhaul of Australia’s environmental laws since the commencement of the EPBC Act…
UPDATE – Significant reforms proposed to the EPA Act
18 Sep, 2025
The full text of the state government’s proposed Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025 has now been released. In our “Alert” blog about the announcement of the Bill, we noted that the government had announced what appeared…
The Environmental Legislation Amendment Bill 2025 (Bill) was recently introduced in the NSW Parliament. The Bill proposes significant changes to a number of environmental laws which are relevant to local councils and state agencies, particularly the Protection of the Environment…
Sentencing Principles Explained – Q & A #3
10 Jun, 2025
This is the final blog in our series about sentencing principles in criminal prosecutions commenced by local councils and government departments. Our previous blogs can be read here: Sentencing Principles Explained – Q & A #1 and here: Sentencing Principles Explained…
Sentencing Principles Explained – Q & A #2
22 May, 2025
Introduction This is the second blog in our series about sentencing principles in criminal prosecutions commenced by local councils and government departments. Our first blog can be read here: Sentencing Principles Explained – Q & A #1. In this blog, we answer…