QLD - Resources - Tougher environmental laws for groundwater extraction proposed

The QLD Government has introduced the Environmental Protection (Underground Water Management) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016, to provide tougher assessment of environmental impacts for resource companies wanting to take groundwater for mining activities. The new laws, among other things, applies to new EA applications for resource activities that include groundwater extraction, and clarifies that ‘make good’ obligations arise, where underground water rights are the likely cause of impairment, even if there is an uncertainty. Read more.