Page 4142 - Week 13 - Thursday, 14 December 2006
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exempt by regulation. Regulations will also provide for agency referrals, and decision time frames will be 30 days, or 45 days if representations are received.
The impact assessment track will apply to all proposals listed in schedule 4 of the bill and to any proposal that is not listed in a development table of the territory plan. Proposals under the impact track will require an environmental impact statement, which will be scoped to address matters that are relevant to a particular proposal. Agencies will be involved as appropriate at the scoping stage, with public consultation occurring at the draft EIS stage. Following consultation, a final EIS will be submitted to the authority and referred to the minister, who may choose to call an inquiry. Finally, the EIS is lodged with the development application to inform the decision-making process.
All development assessment applications in the impact track are publicly notified, during which the EIS will be available. Similar to the merit track, agency referrals will be determined by regulations, and the decision time frame is 30 or 45 days, depending on whether representations are received. Unless exempt by regulation, third-party appeals are available where a representation has been made and material detriment can be demonstrated.
I would now like to turn to the issue of leases and the definition of development. The bill contains a single definition of development, which includes the use of land or a building or structure on the land, beginning a use, changing a use and adding a new use. This definition will enable the territory plan and development assessment system to properly assess the impacts of a development proposal and for appropriate conditions to be placed on the continued operation of that development. Compliance is also enhanced.
The definition of development applies to both existing and new leases and permits a more efficient, better coordinated assessment system within the Planning and Land Authority—one that does not require parallel, separate processes for lease administration and development assessment.
The government has put in place significant safeguards to protect the leasehold system and in particular to preserve existing lessees’ rights.
An approval to undertake a use will only be necessary where there is building work associated with undertaking that use and that work is not otherwise exempt. This applies to existing and new leases. The impact of undertaking a use in the manner proposed in a development application can be assessed and conditioned.
Rights to use land, a building or a structure granted under pre-July 2007 leases are not affected and may continue, including rights under a lease that is renewed either prior to its expiry or within six months of its expiry. A development approval is not required to continue to exercise those rights after the start of the system under the proposed act or to change from one authorised use to another. However, a development approval will be necessary if there is new building work associated with undertaking that use.
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