This policy brief summarises key strengths, weaknesses, and recommended improvements to the Australian Government’s proposed environmental law reforms. While the inclusion of National Environmental Standards (NES), a test for unacceptable impacts, and the commitment to a net gain for nature are welcome, significant gaps remain. Excessive ministerial discretion, unclear definitions, and weak obligations risk undermining the intent of achieving genuinely strong and enforceable protections for nature.

Our key concerns include:

1. Unacceptable impacts: a key safeguard that must be strengthened
2. National Environmental Standards must be mandatory and enforceable
3. Ministerial discretion and national interest exemptions create major loopholes
4. New ‘pay-to-destroy’ restoration contributions risk worsening biodiversity loss
5. Increased devolution to states will remove the national "green safety net"
6. Unchecked ‘rulings’ powers risk accreditation by stealth
7. Net gain test: undefined and easily weakened
8. Industry carve-outs perpetuate unequal protection
9. Indigenous representation, engagement and knowledge are missing from the reforms
10. Lack of data transparency and limited reporting undermine Australia’s biodiversity commitments
11. Reduced time to request reconsideration of Minister’s ‘no controlled action’ determination
12. Impacts of greenhouse gas emissions on climate change are not accounted for

Read the full factsheet for more details and for our recommended improvements.

Why does it matter to get these reforms right?

Biodiversity underpins all aspects of our life, supplying clean air and water and breaking down wastes. About half of Australia’s GDP relies on biodiversity, animals pollinate 90% of crops, and natural ecosystems remain the only viable large-scale carbon sink. Access to biodiverse nature improves our physical and mental health and reduces government health spending.

Biodiversity is in precipitous decline in Australia leading to many ecosystems showing signs of collapse. Our current laws and policy approaches are not succeeding in stemming biodiversity destruction and ecosystem declines. An independent review in 2020 found that Australia’s national environmental law, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999, is ineffective in protecting biodiversity.

More than 2,000 threatened species are afforded protection under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 as Matters of National Environmental Significance, and yet populations of threatened plants, mammals and birds are less than half their 1985 sizes on average.

From 2000−2017, more than 7.7 million hectares of threatened species habitat have been destroyed, affecting 1,390 (85% of all) terrestrial threatened species. The majority of this clearing (93%) was unregulated under national environmental law. Since the EPBC Act was established, threatened species populations have been declining by approximately 4% a year.