Environmental Protection (Underground Water Management) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 (Qld)

An Act to amend the Environmental Protection Act 1994 , the Queensland Heritage Act 1992 , the Water Act 2000 and the Water Reform and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2014 for particular purposes The Parliament of Queensland enacts—

Part 1 Preliminary

1 Short title This Act may be cited as the Environmental Protection (Underground Water Management) and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2016 .

2 Commencement (1) The following provisions commence immediately after the commencement of the Water Reform and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2014 , section 11— • part 2, heading • sections 3 to 8 • section 10, other than to the extent it inserts new part 26 heading and new section 749 • part 4. (2) Part 3 commences on a day to be fixed by proclamation.

Part 2 Amendment of Environmental Protection Act 1994

3 Act amended This part amends the Environmental Protection Act 1994 .

4 Amendment of s 112 (Other key definitions for ch 5) Section 112— insert— underground water rights means any of the following— (a) underground water rights within the meaning of the Mineral Resources Act 1989 ; (b) underground water rights within the meaning of the Petroleum and Gas (Production and Safety) Act 2004 ; (c) underground water rights within the meaning of the Petroleum Act 1923 , section 87(3).

5 Insertion of new s 126A After section 126— insert—

126A Requirements for site-specific applications—particular resource projects and resource activities (1) This section applies to a site-specific application, involving the exercise of underground water rights, for— (a) a resource project that includes a resource tenure that is a mineral development licence, mining lease or petroleum lease; or (b) a resource activity for which the relevant tenure is a mineral development licence, mining lease or petroleum lease. (2) The application must also state the following— (a) any proposed exercise of underground water rights during the period in which resource activities will be carried out under the relevant tenure; (b) the areas in which underground water rights are proposed to be exercised; (c) for each aquifer affected, or likely to be affected, by the exercise of underground water rights— (i) a description of the aquifer; and (ii) an analysis of the movement of underground water to and from the aquifer, including how the aquifer interacts with other aquifers and surface water; and (iii) a description of the area of the aquifer where the water level is predicted to decline because of the exercise of underground water rights; and (iv) the predicted quantities of water to be taken or interfered with because of the exercise of underground water rights during the period in which resource activities are carried out; (d) the environmental values that will, or may, be affected by the exercise of underground water rights and the nature and extent of the impacts on the environmental values; (e) any impacts on the quality of groundwater that will, or may, happen because of the exercise of underground water rights during or after the period in which resource activities are carried out; (f) strategies for avoiding, mitigating or managing the predicted impacts on the environmental values stated for paragraph (d) or the impacts on the quality of groundwater mentioned in paragraph (e).