Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016

This section applies to an application for development consent under Part 4 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, except—

an application for development consent for State significant development, or

an application for a complying development certificate.

If the proposed development is likely to significantly affect threatened species, the application for development consent is to be accompanied by a biodiversity development assessment report.

The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, exempt an application in relation to development, or a kind of development, from the requirement under subsection (2) to be accompanied by a biodiversity development assessment report on either of the following grounds—

for the purposes of expediting the application in response to, or otherwise in connection with, a natural disaster,

in the Minister’s opinion, there are exceptional circumstances that make it appropriate to exempt the application from the requirement.

An order under subsection (3) must set out the following—

the ground on which the order is made,

the development, or kind of development, to which the application must relate,

the Minister’s reasons for making the order, including the Minister’s consideration of the facilitation of ecologically sustainable development.