Murray Watt, Australia’s Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, has announced his commitment to rewrite the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act and bring it up to date. Following protests organized by West Australian Premier Roger Cook, the quality reforms were dropped blinking. Watt’s remarks underscored the need for compromise between various players. He conceded that even if robust environmental safeguards are in place, they might not be reflected in the EPBC laws.
To change the conversation around environmental legislation, Watt convened a meeting. He convened leadership from the mining, environmental, agricultural, and smart growth communities. We hope that interested parties can come together around this set of proposed reforms. These reforms stem from the legislative fixes suggested by the 2020 Samuel Review. This review highlighted the decline of Australia’s natural environment and called for an overhaul of the EPBC laws, advocating for the establishment of National Environmental Standards and an independent Environmental Protection Authority.
Commitment to Reform
Murray Watt reiterated that his government plans to drive the reforms through this parliamentary term. During their recent election victory, he said, the government received a strong mandate to make these changes.
This must be the term where our most important environmental laws get their biggest reforms yet, Watt declared. He remarked, “I think everyone knows we didn’t get as far in the last term as we hoped, and I think all participants in this debate are disappointed we weren’t able to make more progress last term.”
The minister suggested that the conversation about the reforms would prioritize building bridges over burning them. He noted, “There’s a lot of goodwill there… people have said to me they are prepared to give and take, and they know there will need to be some compromise.”
Stakeholder Engagement
To aid an informed and considered discussion, Watt has convened industry groups, agricultural representatives, environmental advocates and First Nation leaders to air their apprehensions over the EPBC reform package. This planning meeting features stakeholders from all sectors of the economy—from small mining companies to national environmental organizations to farmers to urban developers.
Watt also emphasized the need for directness and frankness in these kind of discussions. “I think it’s very easy in these sorts of big debates for people to get in their corners and take their own position and not listen enough to the ‘other’ side. This is a once in a generation opportunity to listen to everybody,” he said.
The minister further stressed the importance of hearing different views in terms of the best approach to take with the reforms. “I’m not ruling things in or out at this early stage, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to duplicate laws to achieve the same purpose,” he added.
Balancing Environmental Concerns and Development
The conversation surrounding the EPBC Act has been reignited by Watt’s recent decision to approve the operating life of Woodside’s North West Shelf project until 2070. This recent approval has drawn deep concern and criticism from environmental advocates who say that it runs counter to the Biden administration’s broader efforts to combat climate change.
In his defense, Watt pointed to those regulations. He pointed out that heavy-emitting projects such as North West Shelf need to meet the criteria set by the government’s recently passed “Safeguard Mechanism,” which mandates at least a 5 percent annual reduction on emissions and committing to net zero by 2050. He stated, “I would make the point that the North West Shelf project, like all heavy-emitting projects, is already subject to the government’s ‘Safeguard Mechanism’…”
The need for a significant change to the structural issues within the current environmental legislation was highlighted in Graeme Samuel’s 2020 review. Samuel noted, “The environment has suffered from two decades of failing to continuously improve the law and its implementation. Business has also suffered.” This sentiment fits neatly into Watt’s agenda for reform. Through his work, he hopes to help build an environmental governance framework that protects ecological integrity and fosters economic development.
