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Amendments to be Moved on Behalf of the Government
(Circulated by authority of the Minister for the Environment
and Heritage,
The Hon. Dr David Kemp MP)
The Environment and Heritage Amendment Bill (No.1) 2002, as introduced into the House of Representatives, amends the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 to identify, conserve and protect places of national heritage significance and to provide for the identification and management of Commonwealth heritage places.
The Government amendments to the Bill will:
• clarify the
application of the approval and offence provisions relating to National Heritage
and Commonwealth Heritage places that are outside the Australian
jurisdiction;
• clarify that a National Heritage criterion prescribed
by the Regulations may relate to one or more of the natural, indigenous,
historic or other heritage values of a place;
• clarify that places
that are wholly or partly outside the Australian jurisdiction cannot be included
in the National Heritage List by way of the emergency listing
process;
• clarify that the Australian Heritage Council’s ability
to assess on its own initiative whether a place meets any of the National
Heritage criteria does not extend to places outside the Australian
jurisdiction;
• ensure that, when it is proposed that a place that is
wholly or partly in a foreign country be included in the National Heritage List,
the agreement of the relevant foreign country and the Minister responsible for
foreign affairs is given prior to listing, and the necessary notifications are
made to relevant government Ministers and opportunities are given for
comment;
• clarify that a Commonwealth Heritage criterion prescribed by
the Regulations may relate to one or more of the natural, indigenous, historic
or other heritage values of a place.
Financial impact statement
Item 2
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by
omitting the proposed subsection 324D(3) and substituting proposed new
subsections 324D(3) and (4) that provide that a National Heritage criterion
prescribed by the regulations may relate to one or more of the natural,
indigenous, historic or other heritage values of a place.
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by inserting a proposed
new subsection 324E(7A) requiring the Minister, when receiving a nomination for
a place that is wholly or partly in a foreign country, to inform the Minister
responsible for foreign affairs of the nomination and any other Minister who may
have administrative responsibilities relating to the place. These notifications
do not have to be made if the nomination is rejected under s.324E.
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by inserting the words
“wholly in the Australian jurisdiction” in the proposed subsection
324F(1). This will provide that places wholly or partly outside the Australian
jurisdiction cannot be included in the National Heritage List by way of the
emergency listing process set out in s.324F.
Item 5
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by
inserting the words “wholly in the Australian jurisdiction” in the
proposed subsection 324G(3). This will provide that the ability of the
Australian Heritage Council to assess, on its own initiative, whether a place
meets any of the National Heritage criteria, whether or not the place is the
subject of a nomination, is limited to places that are wholly in the Australian
jurisdiction.
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by inserting a proposed
new subsection 324G(6) requiring the Minister, when requesting the Australian
Heritage Council to assess whether a place that is wholly or partly in a foreign
country meets any of the National Heritage criteria, to inform the Minister
responsible for foreign affairs of the Council’s assessment and any other
Minister who may have administrative responsibilities relating to the place.
These notifications do not have to be made if the place is the subject of a
nomination.
Item 7
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by inserting a proposed
new subsection 324J(2A) requiring that the Minister must not include a place
that is wholly or partly in a foreign country in the National Heritage List
unless satisfied that the national government of the foreign country has agreed
to the inclusion of the place in the List so far as it is in the country and the
Minister responsible for foreign affairs has agreed to the inclusion.
Before
including the place in the List, the Minister must also inform any other
Minister who may have administrative responsibilities relating to the place of
the proposed inclusion, and give them a reasonable opportunity to comment in
writing whether the place should be included in the List.
Item 8
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by
inserting “in the Australian jurisdiction” in the proposed
subsection 324J(3). This will provide that the Minister’s obligation to
take all practicable steps to identify owners and occupiers of all or part of a
place that is included in the National Heritage List, and to advise them of the
inclusion, does not extend to owners or occupiers of all or part of a place that
is outside the Australian jurisdiction.
Item 9
This item amends item 31 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by inserting a proposed
new subsection 324J(5B) that provides that the Minister cannot alter the
boundaries of a place included in the National Heritage List under the emergency
listing provision so as to include within the altered boundary an area in a
foreign country unless the Minister is satisfied that the national government of
the foreign country has agreed to the inclusion of the place in the List
including the area and the Minister responsible for foreign affairs has agreed
to the inclusion.
Before altering the boundary to include an area in a
foreign country the Minister must also inform any other Minister who may have
administrative responsibilities relating to the place of the proposed
alteration, and give them a reasonable opportunity to comment in writing whether
the boundary should be altered in that way.
Item 10
This item amends item 32 of Schedule 1 to the Bill by
omitting the proposed subsection 341D(3) and substituting proposed new
subsections 341D(3) and (4) that provide that a Commonwealth Heritage criterion
prescribed by the regulations may relate to one or more of the natural,
indigenous, historic or other heritage values of a place.