Environment and Sustainable Development 5 Minute F…

Climate change

Commonwealth: National Climate Risk Assessment Report and National Adaptation Plan launched

On 18 September 2025, the Australian Government unveiled a landmark local weather coverage package deal that features a new 2035 emissions discount goal being a spread of 62-70% under 2005 ranges, a Net Zero Plan with 6 supporting sectoral plans. This adopted the discharge earlier that week of Australia’s first National Climate Risk Assessment alongside the National Adaptation Plan. Together they map bodily dangers offered by local weather change to 2050 and past and set out how governments will coordinate adaptation. The Assessment and Plan display how vital power, transport, water safety, communities and ecosystems are dealing with growing threat of publicity to local weather change hazards.

We can be publishing separate articles on the above issues quickly.

Commonwealth: Climate-related transition plan steerage launched below Treasury session paper

Treasury launched a session paper on 15 August outlining creating greatest follow for climate-related transition plans as a part of its commitments below the Sustainable Finance Roadmap. Transition plans stipulate how entities determine and reply to climate-related dangers and alternatives.

While the chance to make a submission closed on 24 September, it’s comparatively clear that the session paper indicators Treasury’s intention to intently align its steerage with that of the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation’s Transition Planning Taskforce Disclosure Framework. Accordingly, any modifications to the ultimate steerage are prone to be peripheral slightly than substantive.

Entities which have already got a transition plan or have commenced preparation of such a plan ought to fastidiously think about how intently the adopted framework aligns with the session paper. This can even be particularly vital for entities with necessary sustainability reporting obligations and present transition plans, as they are going to be required to reveal these plans as a part of the reporting course of.

Energy

Queensland: Repeal of Forest Wind Farm Development Act

The Queensland Government introduced its resolution to repeal the Forest Wind Farm Development Act 2020, ensuing within the cancellation of the 266-turbine Forest Wind Project, one of many State’s most important renewable power proposals. The Act had beforehand supplied a streamlined pathway for the undertaking’s growth throughout state forest land within the Gympie, Maryborough, and Fraser Coast areas. Its repeal indicators a shift within the Government’s strategy to balancing renewable power growth with group pursuits and environmental concerns.

The resolution follows current modifications to Queensland’s regulatory panorama for wind or large-scale photo voltaic tasks launched by the Planning (Social Impact and Community Benefit) and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2025, which require group profit agreements previous to submitting sure growth functions. 

The new regulatory panorama and resolution to repeal the Act highlights the Queensland Government’s stance on guaranteeing communities are adequately knowledgeable and concerned in renewable power tasks.

Renewable power proponents ought to anticipate further time and prices for early group engagement and will fastidiously evaluate any present tenure or facilitation agreements in gentle of those modifications.

Major tasks

WA: New State Development Bill for Western Australia

The State Development Bill 2025 was launched to the WA Parliament on 10 September 2025, aiming to fast-track approvals for main strategic tasks round WA and unlock strategic precincts.

The key modifications proposed by the Bill embrace granting powers to declare Priority Projects and State Development Areas (SDAs) and formalising the Coordinator General’s position in investigation, advisory, facilitation and coordination capabilities.

For companies and trade, this implies shorter timeframes, elevated co-ordination and facilitation of tasks by way of the Coordinator General, and elevated certainty in investments for large-scale infrastructure tasks and developments that are of strategic or financial significance to WA.

WA: Updates to mining laws

The WA Government has launched three key initiatives as part of the Mining Amendment Act 2022. The initiatives goal to enhance the environmental approvals course of in relation to mining tasks by streamlining approvals for low-risk mining actions and managing compliance for mining actions each for trade and the Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration.

Mining firms ought to evaluate their present and deliberate actions to find out whether or not they qualify for the streamlined course of and make sure that their compliance techniques are updated with the brand new necessities.

Environmental safety

Commonwealth: Accelerated timeline on reforms to EPBC Act

The Commonwealth Government has introduced it’ll speed up the timeline on its nationwide reforms to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) and introduce laws into Parliament earlier than the top of this yr. The reforms will search to ship stronger environmental safety and restoration, extra environment friendly and sturdy undertaking assessments and higher accountability and transparency in resolution making.

Alongside the EPBC Act reforms, the Government has dedicated to establishing a Federal Environment Protection Agency to convey collectively regulatory capabilities of Australia’s nationwide environmental legal guidelines.

Industry doubtlessly impacted by the proposed reforms ought to monitor information updates in relation to the EPBC Act to maintain conscious of potential impacts.

Planning

NSW: Landmark reforms to NSW’s planning system for housing growth

The NSW Government has launched landmark reforms to the state’s planning system below the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025, in search of to streamline growth by amending the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 in order that extra houses and jobs will be delivered throughout the state. Key parts of the proposed reform embrace:

• establishing the Development Coordination Authority to offer recommendation on growth functions on behalf of all authorities companies as a “single front door”;

• offering that consent authorities are required to think about “significant likely” impacts, slightly than “likely” impacts for sure growth functions;

• new “targeted assessment pathways” for varieties of growth the place strategic planning and group session has already taken place (which) may significantly cut back approval timeframes for eligible tasks; and

• implementing customary situations for growth consents and making modifications to sure evaluate and enchantment processes.

The proposed reforms sign the NSW Government’s effort to prioritise housing growth and inexpensive housing. Developers and stakeholders within the housing sector ought to evaluate the proposed amendments and think about how they could impression present or future tasks, together with supply timeframes.

Special due to Samuel Sunter (Melbourne), Sara Pezhhan (Perth), Denise Angelopoulos (Sydney) and Mykaela Faulkner (Brisbane) for his or her contribution to this version.