Vegetation Management Amendments Pass

The Queensland Parliament has passed the Government’s Vegetation Management and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018, which seeks to amend land clearing laws to protect remnant and high-value regrowth vegetation.

A previous iteration of this Bill was defeated in the last Parliament.

The Property Council has highlighted a number of concerns for the industry with this legislation, including how local governments may interpret the amendments and updated mapping through their planning schemes. 

Unlike the previous Bill, the new legislation does not propose any changes to the Vegetation Offsets Act, attempt to reverse the onus of proof, or remove ‘mistake of fact’ as a legal defence.

More accurate vegetation maps have also been released by the State Government in the first major update to vegetation and ecosystem mapping in five years. New maps can be requested here.

In a surprising recent ruling from the Planning and Environment Court, clearing rights for Category X land have been called into question. Contrary to current industry understanding, the court found that clearing Category X land can be assessable development under a local government planning scheme.

Members are encouraged to seek advice if they intend to clear Category X land, unless the local planning scheme expressly excludes this category from assessment.