Our environment is under pressure. Our laws to protect it are broken, and for too long those laws have not kept pace with the challenges we face. Whether it be safeguarding our iconic landscapes, protecting our threatened species or nurturing our unique ecosystems, our current laws are not working for our environment. Australians are concerned, and rightly so. That's why the Environment Protection Reform Bill 2025 and the others in this package are being introduced by the Albanese government. They are practical, evidence based reforms that deliver real, enforceable and meaningful protections for our environment. They ensure that development is handled responsibly while safeguarding our unique ecosystems. And they make decision-making faster, more predictable and more accountable.
This reform package is long overdue and, importantly, it responds to all the Samuel review recommendations handed down to the coalition government. In our last term in government the Albanese government made it a priority to: respond to this review; fix our environment laws; provide clear, nationally consistent guidelines; and establish enforceable penalties through a historic national environment protection agency. But on this journey the Albanese government has faced considerable roadblocks. When push came to shove, in the last term of government the coalition and the Greens teamed up to block reforms that would have delivered clarity for business and stronger protections for the environment. Despite this, the Albanese government was not deterred. We've pushed ahead, and now we draw a line in the sand. Today we champion these groundbreaking environmental reforms and we urge both the Greens and the coalition to be more constructive this time around and back in these bills.
The bills establish clear national environmental standards that must be adhered to. Whether you're mining in a culturally significant area or working to build new much-needed housing, the bills will give clarity and certainty while delivering better protections. These standards are not aspirational. They will be clear rules grounded in science and law. Most importantly, they cannot be weakened over time. The bill makes this crystal clear.
The reforms also include a new definition of 'unacceptable impact' specific to each protected matter. This will set clear and upfront criteria for impacts that cannot be approved, and provide a safeguard against impacts that cause the irreversible loss of Australia's biodiversity and heritage. The proposed reforms will clearly define what types of environmental harm must be avoided and cannot be offset.
The bills also introduce protection statements for threatened species, providing clarity for decision-makers and proponents. Moreover, the bills strengthen compliance and enforcement powers, making it clear that serious breaches will no longer be treated as just the cost of doing business. Importantly, they introduce the principle of net gain for environmental offsets. The reality is, the current offset regime doesn't work. It does not work for our environment and it facilitates irresponsible development. The Albanese government recognises this, and through these bills we're charting a different course. These bills introduce a new net gain framework which means projects are required to not only avoid and minimise impacts but also actively contribute to the improvement of our environment. The principle of net gain will ensure projects leave the environment in a better state than they found it. This can be achieved through direct offsets such as replanting degraded habitats, restoring wetlands or funding species-recovery programs. It can also be achieved through contributions to a central restoration fund which can then be strategically deployed to areas of greatest ecological benefit. Restoration contributions can be pooled strategically to achieve maximum environmental benefit, giving nature the chance to recover, regenerate and become more resilient.
These bills are about reversing decades of decline, and they're also about ensuring that when a species is listed as threatened, or when a habitat is identified as endangered, the law is equipped to protect it effectively. They are about ensuring that when development occurs it does so responsibly, and in a way that genuinely contributes to restoring the environment.
I know how important this is for my communities in Corangamite. They are passionate. They care deeply about improving our unique environments across the Bellarine and Surf Coast. To the Landcare volunteers whom I have worked with over many years, to the schoolchildren who ask me questions about the future of our planet, and to the surfers I met this morning who care so deeply about our ocean—this bill is for you. I know just how much they care, and they want our laws to work better for the environment and for future generations. They want environmental laws to work better to achieve responsible development and protection of flora and fauna.
The bills also introduce bioregional planning, mapping conservation zones and development zones in advance so that proposed projects can be assessed against bioregional plans and, where appropriate, can proceed while ensuring high-value areas are robustly protected. Bioregional planning will be a game changer. It will enable a coordinated, strategic approach across multiple jurisdictions, ensuring environmental gains contribute to a healthier, more connected landscape over the longer term. That is the essence of the first pillar of this reform: stronger environmental protection and restoration.
The second pillar relates to greater robust decision-making to tackle duplication and delays. The bills will streamline assessment pathways, reducing statutory timeframes for compliant proposals by up to 20 days. A new national interest pathway will also be created, allowing projects that are critical to Australia's future to proceed, under strict transparency rules, while still maintaining high environmental standards. The reforms also modernise reconsideration provisions, setting clear timeframes and improving certainty for business, while maintaining environmental safeguards.
The third pillar focuses on greater accountability and transparency in environmental decision-making. To achieve this, the Albanese government is establishing the National Environmental Protection Agency, Australia's first national, and formidable, independent environmental regulator. The EPA will oversee compliance; enforce the law; hold serious offenders to account; provide guidance and education to business; and monitor, audit and report, giving communities confidence that the law is being applied, enforced and taken seriously.
Alongside the EPA, Environment Information Australia will consolidate environmental data into a single authoritative source. For too long, environmental information in this country has been fragmented, inconsistent and hard to access. EIA will collect, consolidate and publish data about the state of our environment, improving decision-making for government and business. It will make it easier to identify emerging threats to our natural world.
The reforms also enshrine First Nations engagement in the system, ensuring that decisions affecting land, water and heritage are informed by those who have cared for these places for generations. First Nations perspectives will guide the protection of country, and their expertise will be recognised in decision-making processes, from species conservation to bioregional planning.
These bills will deliver tangible and lasting benefits. They will help protect threatened species, such as the eastern curlew, the Lead beater's possum and the hooded plover. They will safeguard forests, rivers, wetlands and grasslands. They will ensure scope 1 and scope 2 emissions are reported by proponents. The safeguard mechanism will provide the necessary guardrails to achieve emissions reduction targets for our biggest emitters.
These are the environmental protection laws Australians have been waiting for, and they continue a proud Labor tradition. Labor has always acted to protect our environment. We have delivered landmark reforms throughout our history. Programs such as Landcare have empowered communities to restore and care for their local landscapes, from the smallest waterways to the largest forests, engaging volunteers, schools and local groups in the hands-on work of regeneration. It was Labor that saved the Franklin River from destruction. Labor protected Kakadu, the Daintree and countless other sites of ecological, cultural and historic significance. We have built the largest network of marine parks in the world. We have championed initiatives that address the urgent threats of biodiversity loss, habitat destruction and the broader impacts of environmental change. We have done this while balancing the needs of communities and the economy.
This bill is the next step in that legacy. So I say to the Greens and the opposition: will you stand in the way?
At the last election, the people cast their vote, and the message was clear. They want a system that works for the environment, for communities and for business. They want a national EPA that has teeth. Under these laws, serious environmental harm will carry serious consequences, and those who profit from destruction will be held to account.
These bills are not just about law reform. They are about restoring trust in the laws that protect our environment. They balance protection with progress, and they are built on many years of consultation.
In closing, I'd like to recognise our Minister for the Environment and Water, and the former minister, the member for Sydney, for all the work they have done to deliver these ground-breaking reforms. It's now vital that these bills pass and that, together, we leave a legacy that protects what we all hold dear: our nation's amazing coastlines, rivers, bushland and cultural heritage. I commend these bills to the House.
