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PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT

Biggest Change to Parks Act since 1974

NEVILLE SCHRADER 
Secretary of NPA’s Lachlan Valley Branch

The biggest change to the National Parks and Wildlife Act (NPW Act) since it was rewritten in 1974 passed though Parliament late last year. ANDREW COX* writes...

Intensive efforts over three weeks by NPA and other environmental groups improved what was initially a significant weakening of the NPW Act by the Carr Government. More than 50 amendments proposed by environment groups were passed.

Despite this, in a win for developers, owners of inholdings and the NPWS intent on deriving extra revenue from its reserves, the finalised changes allow expanded leasing and licensing provisions in national parks and mechanisms for private landholders adjacent to national parks to be granted exclusive access rights.

The changes had been mooted for more than three years (see NPJ June 2001) but were rushed through in late November with less than three weeks of sitting time before Parliament concluded for the year. The first NPA learnt of the details was when the Bill appeared on the Parliamentary website.


PHOTO: ANDREW COX

Holiday cabins have been built right onto the beach
 in Murramarang National Park

Following is a summary of the positive and negative changes to the NPW Act passed by Parliament (1-3). A brief list of the changes proposed by environment groups but rejected by the Government and the Opposition is also provided.

Improvements proposed by Government

· add objects to the NPW Act

· create management principles for all reserve categories

· standardise process for ‘reservation’ of reserves

· remove provisions about state game reserves

· expand powers and functions for NPWS

· change ‘state recreation area’ to ‘state conservation area’ and every five years review for conversion to national park or nature reserve

· add definition of wild rivers

· allow conservation agreements over Crown lands

· expand matters for consideration and standardise process when preparing plans of management, and ensure minimum public exhibition of draft plan is 90 days.

· specify functions of advisory council and regional advisory committees

· give NPA and NCC each a seat on advisory council (expanded to 19 members)

· specify membership qualifications of regional advisory committees

· strengthen and standardise offences and penalties, including those relating to Aboriginal heritage and reserves.

Improvements proposed by environment groups

· include wilderness, wild rivers and world heritage in the NPW Act objects and reserve management provisions

· establish a statutory NPWS audit and compliance unit with clear roles and powers

· strengthen reserve management principles

· require draft conservation agreements on public lands to be exhibited

· retain the advisory council’s primary role in providing advice to the Minister on draft plans of management

· prevent minor changes to plans of management without public exhibition

· limit ‘adaptive reuse’ leases to a restricted range of purposes, outside wilderness, with limited options for residential accommodation. All draft leases of this type are to be public exhibited and the location to be specified in the plan of management.

· establish public register with details of all leases, rights of way and easements in reserves

· provide some environmental safeguards for new access rights to landholders

· rewrite the functions of the advisory council

· provide a jointly nominated NPA and NCC position on each regional advisory committee

· ensure new objects of the NPW Act are binding, and carrying out of functions under the Act are to ‘give effect to the public interest in the protection of the values for which land is reserved…and the appropriate management of those lands’

 Weakening proposed by Government

· there is no longer a link between the use of a reserve and the purpose of the reserve, rejecting past Court rulings.

· new ‘adaptive reuse’ leases (for activities in existing structures in national parks and some other reserves) can be issued for purposes contrary to the reserve purpose and for unlimited periods

· new three-day licences can be issued in ‘modified natural areas’ for ‘any purpose'

· new easements, rights of way and licences can be issued to landholders for the exclusive access to their inholdings partially surrounded by a reserve

· unnecessary concurrence roles given to Ministers for Mines, Water and Forests for various conservation functions

· new regional parks can now be areas suitable instead as national park or other reserve

· Minister may ignore public comment when allowing a broader range of purposes for ‘adaptive reuse’ leases and leases for residential accommodation.

 

Changes by environment groups but not supported

· establish an independent Board to manage NPWS

· limit the maximum term of ‘adaptive reuse’ leases to 21 years.

· landholder access rights to be non-exclusive and granted only to present owners with existing physical vehicle access

· new wild and heritage river nomination and declaration process

· limit changes to wilderness boundaries

· ensure all activities in reserves are ‘appropriate’ (with definition)

· establish regional boards to oversee and audit mining in state conservation areas, and limit mining exploration to 20 years before it reverts to a national park

· require NPWS permission for State Forests to allow the destruction or sale of native plants

· increase penalties for harming fauna

· create a hierarchy for NPW Act objects and reserve management principles

The changes to the NPW Act are expected to come into effect during the first half of 2002.

NPA wishes to thank the eight Upper House cross-bench members of NSW Parliament that voted in support of environment group amendments, in particular independent Richard Jones, Ian Cohen and Lee Rhiannon of the NSW Greens and Arthur Chesterfield-Evans of the Australian Democrats.

NPA could not have achieved the improvements won without the tireless efforts of Keith Muir of the Colong Foundation for Wilderness, Peter Prineas, Jeff Angel of the Total Environment Centre and those from the Nature Conservation Council of NSW.

Also instrumental in our success was the support of the many hundreds and possibly thousands or more NPA members and others lobbying Parliamentarians in response to our urgent pleas for help.

Andrew Cox is NPA's Executive Officer


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