A new Government body is to be established to better protect Australia’s environment and make clearer, faster decisions.
Announcing the new body with the 2023-24 Budget, the Minister for the Environment and Water, Tanya Plibersek said Environment Protection Australia (EPA) was at the heart of plans to rewrite “Australia’s old, broken environment laws.”
Ms Plibersek said the EPA would be charged with transforming the current system for environmental approvals.
“The EPA will be a tough cop on the beat,” Ms Plibersek said.
“It will be transparent and independent,” she said.
“It will make environmental assessments, decide project approvals and the conditions attached to them, and it will make sure that those conditions are being followed on the ground.”
Ms Plibersek said the Budget also provided urgent funding to save some of Australia’s most precious places and those who looked after them, including $262.3 million to support Commonwealth national parks; $92.8 million for upgrades in the town of Muṯitjulu within Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park; $163.4 million for the Australian Institute of Marine Science; and $45.2 million for the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust.
She said $236 million had been allocated to establish a national and reliable flood warning system.
“The funding will be used to purchase and upgrade gauges, ensuring communities in flood-prone areas can be better prepared and supported,” the Minister for Environment and Water said.
“The 2023-24 Budget will help us protect more of what’s precious, repair more of what’s damaged, and manage nature better for the future.”
