The resolution between the ALP Government and the Greens on Environmental Protection Laws is historic. It provides serious protection for the environment and at the same time provides more efficient and effective approvals to market forces. Environmental and market forces have often been in conflict before, but are not now in the global era of climate change and sustainability. The next economy requires fast approvals of renewable energy, not fossil fuels. It requires fast approvals of well-located, net-zero housing projects that are affordable and do not create urban sprawl. It requires agriculture and industry that are not relying on fossil fuels or producing fossil fuels that are subsidised for a global market. These are the requirements of the net-zero economy. They are going to help make a better environment and a better economy.

Clearly, the anger of the Opposition suggests that fossil fuel companies were desperately looking for help when it’s clear that the world and local markets for their products are disappearing. The new EPA Act is recognising economic and environmental realities which are now clearly evident in the Australian economy and politics.

This historic recognition in the EPA Act is reflected in the support of civil society. Most global and national environmental groups, clean energy groups and industry groups have been supporting the Net Zero and Sustainable Development agendas for a decade. It is common sense, and it has been driving change in Australia for a decade without a Federal Government process that brought this together.

We now have an economically efficient and environmentally efficient EPA Act. This is an historic day in Australia.

While the deal struck by Labor and the Greens is set to include some important and welcome wins for the environment, including ending industry carve outs (Regional Forestry Agreements) and land clearing exemptions, a non-offsettable matters list, and climate disclosures for projects, it’s a long, long, long way short of what Australia’s more than 2000 threatened species and ecological communities need for a brighter future.

Despite extensive expert reviews and scientific advice, the Albanese government’s environmental law reform package will not be sufficient to genuinely help turn the tide on Australia’s extinction and climate crises. Given surveys consistently show that the vast majority of Australians want far greater care for and protection of the wildlife and places they know and love, today’s deal represents another tragic political betrayal.

Everyone will be relieved that a deal has finally been done to renovate the nature laws after 6 years of review, disappointment, renegotiation, and horse-trading. There are some things to celebrate and some VERY BIG RISKS in the new laws. The logging loophole is finally closed. National environmental standards are a good idea, but the wording of the standards is far from finalised - the devil will be in the detail - a lot of work to do. 

A list of non-offsetable matters is a positive development that will hopefully protect things that cannot be subjected to the madness of offsetting**, and a quick ‘no' to projects with unacceptable impacts will be good for nature and business, but the definition is so vague that it will likely be used only when politically expedient. The Restoration Contribution Fund will cause more harm than good, and the holder or minister can ignore the offsets standard whenever they please. The model of ‘pay-to-destroy' has not worked anywhere it has been tried.

Overall, there are good structures established under these new laws - but far too much ministerial and executive discretion, and way too many loopholes. Nature-friendly governments will be able to do good things; nature-unfriendly governments will be largely free to do the opposite.

**note these comments are based on current information - to be confirmed later today.

It is very disappointing to see that once in a generation reforms will pass through the Senate today, remarkably even before the public consultation on the proposed Bills has closed. As myself and colleagues at the University of Melbourne made it very clear in our submission, changes to the EPBC Act put vital environmental protection laws under threat.

The changes include introducing dangerous new Ministerial discretion and loopholes that will allow projects to go ahead with little to no regard to their environmental impact. There is also almost zero mention of climate change, a significant oversight given that this is one of the single greatest threats to Australia’s environment.

While it is unclear how many concessions the Greens have managed to secure (from initial reports, this notably includes protection of native forests from logging and on halting fast-tracked fossil fuel projects in 30 days), it seems unlikely that the highly discretionary language has changed. Moreover, we know that climate change is not going to feature in the legislation.

It’s true that governments always have to balance trade-offs between goals. Developments need to go ahead. Economic growth needs to be managed. But, to my mind, this cannot be at the expense of the one environment that we have.