Amendments to the Pastoral Land Act 1992

The amendments to the Pastoral Land Act 1992 commenced on 31 March 2022. The amendments will ensure appropriate environmental protections, while streamlining and improving regulatory processes, increasing certainty and creating efficiencies for the Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security and the pastoral industry.

These amendments introduced a statutory permit as part of the approval process for clearing pastoral land. The new permitting provisions are supported by comprehensive compliance and enforcement tools, including powers for the Pastoral Land Board to direct a person to stop land clearing, require rehabilitation of unauthorised clearing, and prosecute breaches of land clearing requirements. These provisions will modernise land clearing requirements on pastoral land and ensure that the clearing of land is undertaken in a sustainable, and fully regulated, manner.

The comprehensive permitting scheme for managing clearing of pastoral land is consistent with existing obligations under the Act that requires pastoralists to obtain approval to clear land, with the amendments providing the Pastoral Land Board with greater capacity to enforce breaches relating to land clearing.

The scheme includes:

• requirements to obtain a permit to clear from the Board prior to conducting any clearing;
• powers for the Board to exempt certain clearing activities from the permitting requirements; for example, clearing for fences and tracks that are necessary for the efficient and effective operation of the pastoral activity;
• powers for the Board to direct a person to stop clearing and to require a person who has conducted unpermitted clearing (whether without a permit or in contravention of a permit) to prepare and implement a rehabilitation plan; and
• offences associated with clearing without a permit or contrary to the conditions of the permit, and for breaching directions to stop clearing or implement a rehabilitation plan.

The amendments formalise the requirements for land clearing applications to be publicly advertised and that public comments received must be considered, before making a decision in respect of the application.

There are also new requirements for the registration of transfer or sublease of a pastoral lease transactions with the Land Title Office.

The introduction of a permitting scheme for pastoral land clearing formalises existing processes undertaken for these activities. The amendments clarify the expectations for obtaining approval to clear pastoral land and detail the Board’s functions and powers in administering the scheme.

The amendments support public participation in land clearing decisions, will increase transparency and certainty in the management of clearing on the pastoral land estate, and have the potential to improve environmental outcomes through the inclusion of appropriate compliance and enforcement tools.