The Local Government and Environment Committee has examined the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) (Transitional Provisions) Amendment Bill, and recommends that it be passed with the amendments shown.

The Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) (Transitional Provisions) Amendment Bill seeks to amend section 162 of the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012. Section 162 outlines transitional provisions for existing operators undertaking petroleum mining activities involving structures or pipelines which require a marine consent from the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).

Section 162(4) of the Act specifies that existing mining operations may continue only until the expiration of the operator’s permits or privileges as they were on the day before the Act came into force. To continue operating following the expiry of these permits or privileges, operators must have received a marine consent. The Act does not permit an operator to continue beyond their permit or privilege while a consent application is being considered by the EPA.

The bill would allow operators to continue mining while their consent application was in progress and any appeals were determined. The purpose of the bill is to provide greater certainty to petroleum mining companies operating in the Exclusive Economic Zone, and to help their transition to the 2012 Act’s regulations.

This commentary covers the amendments that we recommend to the bill.

We recommend amending clause 4, new section 162(5), to specify that existing petroleum operators must lodge a marine consent application, and have it accepted as complete by the EPA, at least 9 months before the expiry of their mining permit or privilege. We note that if an application for a marine consent for an activity to which this section applies was accepted as complete by the EPA in 2015 before the date of commencement of this Act, it is deemed to apply in that case.

We consider that this amendment would provide adequate time to avoid disruption to mining operations, especially as the marine consent process will be well established and the Act’s provisions well known by the next expiry date of an operator’s mining licence in 2025. We also believe it would address any concerns about an open-ended timeframe for mining activities occurring in the absence of an approved marine consent.

We recommend further amending clause 4, new section 162(5), to clarify that existing mining activities past the expiry of a mining permit or privilege could continue until the application was decided by the EPA and appeals were determined, provided that an application was lodged and accepted as complete by the EPA, in accordance with the application deadline.

We believe this provision would help to prevent the possibility of an operator being forced to cease operations while an application was in progress.