2019

The Parliament of the

Commonwealth of Australia

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Presented and read a first time

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Heritage Listing for the Bight) Bill 2019

No.      , 2019

(Ms Sharkie)

A Bill for an Act to include the Great Australian Bight in the National Heritage List, and for related purposes

Contents

1............ Short title............................................................................................. 1

2............ Commencement................................................................................... 1

3............ Schedules............................................................................................ 2

Schedule 1—Amendments                                                                                                3

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999                   3

A Bill for an Act to include the Great Australian Bight in the National Heritage List, and for related purposes

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

1  Short title

                   This Act is the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Heritage Listing for the Bight) Act 2019.

2  Commencement

             (1)  Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note:          This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.

             (2)  Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

3  Schedules

                   Legislation that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—Amendments

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

1  Subsection 324C(1)

Omit “BB”, substitute “BB, BBA”.

2  Subsection 324C(2)

After “List”, insert “in accordance with Subdivision BA, BB or BC”.

3  After Subdivision BB of Division 1A of Part 15

Insert:

Subdivision BBA—Inclusion of places in the National Heritage List: Great Australian Bight heritage area

324RA  Inclusion of Great Australian Bight heritage area

             (1)  As soon as practicable after the commencement of this section, the Minister must, by instrument published in the Gazette, include in the National Heritage List:

                     (a)  the Great Australian Bight heritage area; and

                     (b)  the National Heritage values the Minister believes the Great Australian Bight heritage area has or may have.

             (2)  Before including a National Heritage value for the Great Australian Bight heritage area in the National Heritage List, the Minister must consult any communities in Western Australia or South Australia likely to be affected by the inclusion of the Great Australian Bight heritage area in the National Heritage List.

             (3)  Despite anything else in this Act, the Great Australian Bight heritage area must not be removed from the National Heritage List.

             (4)  For the purposes of this section, the Great Australian Bight heritage area is the Commonwealth area in the Southern Ocean:

                     (a)  with:

                              (i)  the western boundary extending along the 123°20'0.00"E line of longitude; and

                             (ii)  the eastern boundary extending along the 140°34'8.13"E line of longitude; and

                     (b)  within the outer limits of the continental shelf (within the meaning of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973) of Australia (not including its external Territories).