Sustainability Bites

There is no such thing as a free lunch

EIA

Is there still a chance of environmental reform before the federal election? Probably not, but never say never …

Is there still a chance of environmental reform before the federal election? Probably not, but never say never …

The Government’s ambitious ‘Nature Positive’ initiative appears to have founded on the rocks of realpolitik. Peter Burnett has been closely following the saga of Nature Positive policy reform and believes while the chances are small that legislation establishing an EPA and EIA will be passed before the next election, they are not zero. Indeed, as he explains here, there is a credible pathway that might enable the reforms to be acceptable to all parties and still achieve significant environmental outcomes. This might be critical if the Government wants to burnish its rather dull environmental credentials as it heads into what is expected to be a tight electoral race.

Nature-positive information: devilish detail and a head with two hats and no teeth

Nature-positive information: devilish detail and a head with two hats and no teeth

Will the new Environment Information Australia (EIA) be up to the job? Can it equip us, for example, with the necessary data to discern if the government’s new “nature positive” policies and nature repair markets are delivering real gains, or just biodiversity conservation doublespeak? As the saying goes, the Devil is in the detail. Or in this case, in the lack of it.

The need for speed: can we buy faster environmental approvals to enable Australia to become a clean energy superpower?

The need for speed: can we buy faster environmental approvals to enable Australia to become a clean energy superpower?

Rapid Environmental Impact Assessment, without diluting environment has now become a national priority. What was once a problem of red tape and substandard practice, is now central to the clean energy revolution and vital to our collective future. Throwing money at the problem won’t solve it. Even more data and regulatory guidance won’t solve it, though of course it will make inroads. Solving the problem completely, achieving complete regulatory efficiency and removing a major bottleneck to Australia’s transition to a carbon-neutral economy, will take something out of the box. Maybe we should look at how the courts now do case management.

All’s fair in love and law?

All’s fair in love and law?

Is there a tangle of ‘green tape’ out there that needs to be ‘busted’? What about an environmental conspiracy to bog down coal mines and other development projects in litigation? Or are we witnessing another round in the seemingly endless political struggle to control the environmental policy agenda?

Who’s the BOS?

Who’s the BOS?

Federal environment minister Sussan Ley has announced new arrangements with NSW covering the application of biodiversity offsets under federal environmental impact assessment (EIA) laws. Under these arrangements the NSW Biodiversity Offsets Scheme (BOS) will cover both federal and state requirements and the federal policy on offsets will no longer apply.