Page 4020 - Week 13 - Thursday, 10 November 1994
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The National Environment Protection Council Bill is part of a package of complementary Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation to give effect to Schedule 4 of the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment. For ease of reference, the text of the agreement is appended as the Schedule to the Bill. Although a signatory to the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment, the Western Australian Government has indicated that it will not be participating in the council at this stage. This action does not invalidate the national scheme. However, it is to be hoped that Western Australia will eventually review its position and join with other jurisdictions so that the council's work can extend across the whole of Australia. Meanwhile, all participating jurisdictions are taking legislative action to establish the council. Both the Commonwealth and Queensland parliaments have already passed the legislation. Other participating States and the Northern Territory are expected to introduce similar legislation later this year.
The Bill before this Assembly establishes the National Environment Protection Council - a ministerial council drawn from all participating States, Territories and the Commonwealth. The ministerial council will be empowered to make national environmental protection measures which, through complementary implementation mechanisms, will apply as valid law in each participating jurisdiction. As set out in the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment, the National Environment Protection Council may develop measures in relation to ambient air quality; ambient marine, estuarine and freshwater quality; noise, related to protecting amenity where variations in measures would have an adverse effect on national markets for goods and services; general guidelines for the assessment of site contamination; the environmental impacts associated with hazardous wastes; motor vehicle emissions; and the reuse and recycling of used materials.
National environment protection measures may be a combination of goals, guidelines, standards and protocols. In summary, goals are the desired outcomes; guidelines are the means of meeting these outcomes; standards are the quantifiable characteristics against which environmental quality is assessed; and protocols are the processes for measuring environmental characteristics to determine whether desired outcomes are being achieved.
Consistent with the principles of ecologically sustainable development, and to ensure simplicity and effectiveness of administration, the council must develop measures through a public consultative process, having regard to a number of factors as specified in the Bill. Important among these is the need to have regard to regional environmental differences. This will ensure that proper account is taken of the different properties of air, water and land across the diversity of Australian environments. In making a final decision on a measure, the council must have regard to an impact statement relating to the measure, to the public submissions received, and to advice from a committee of Commonwealth and State officials. Decisions by the council, which is chaired by the Commonwealth, will be by a two-thirds majority. The Commonwealth is thus one of eight members, under current arrangements, and does not have a casting vote. Measures will be disallowed if three or more members vote against a proposal put to the council.
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