Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

For each threatening process in the list of key threatening processes established under section 183, the Minister may at any time decide to:

have a threat abatement plan for the whole process; or

have a threat abatement plan for one or more parts of the process; or

not have a threat abatement plan at all for the process.

If the Minister decides to have a threat abatement plan for one or more parts of the key threatening process, the Minister is taken to have also decided not to have a threat abatement plan for any other part of the process.

The Minister must make a decision under this section:

within 90 days after the process is included in the list; and

within 5 years after the last decision under this section in relation to the process, unless that decision was to have a threat abatement plan for the whole process.

A process may be included in the list of key threatening processes by combining or separating other processes (see paragraph 184(ca)).

The Minister must decide to have a threat abatement plan for the whole process if the Minister believes that having and implementing such a plan is a feasible, effective and efficient way to abate the whole process.

The Minister must decide to have a threat abatement plan for a part of the process if:

the Minister believes that having and implementing such a plan is a feasible, effective and efficient way to abate that part of the process; and

the Minister does not believe that having and implementing a threat abatement plan for the whole process is a feasible, effective and efficient way to abate the whole process.

The Minister must decide to not have a threat abatement plan for the whole process, or any part of the process, if the Minister does not believe that having and implementing a threat abatement plan for the whole process, or the part of the process, is a feasible, effective and efficient way to abate the whole process or the part of the process.

Before making a decision under this section, the Minister must:

request the Scientific Committee to give advice within a specified period; and

take reasonable steps to request any Commonwealth agency, any State, any self‑governing Territory, and any agency of a State or self‑governing Territory, that would be affected by or interested in abatement of any part of the process to give advice within a specified period;

Subsection (3) does not prevent the Minister from requesting any other person or body to give advice within a specified period on the feasibility, effectiveness or efficiency of having and implementing a threat abatement plan to abate the whole or any part of the process.

A request for advice on the feasibility, effectiveness or efficiency of having and implementing a threat abatement plan to abate the whole or any part of the process may be made before or after the process is included in the list of key threatening processes established under section 183.

The Minister must not make a decision whether to have a threat abatement plan for the whole or any part of the process before the end of the period within which he or she has requested a person or body to give advice on the feasibility, effectiveness or efficiency of having and implementing a threat abatement plan to abate the whole or any part of the process.

When the Minister is making a decision under this section, he or she must consider the advice that a person or body gave on request within the period specified in the request.

The Minister must publish in accordance with the regulations (if any):

a decision under this section; and

the Minister’s reasons for the decision.

Subsections (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) do not apply in relation to a decision about a process included in the list under section 183 as first established.