Environmental impact referral assessment and approval is required for proposed controlled actions that are likely to have a significant impact on a matter of national environmental significance. An action includes a project, development, undertaking, activity, or series of activities.
The legislation currently identifies nine matters of national environmental significance:
- world heritage properties
- national heritage places
- Ramsar wetlands of international significance
- listed threatened species and ecological communities
- listed migratory species
- Commonwealth marine areas
- Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
- nuclear actions (including uranium mining)
- a water resource, in relation to coal seam gas development and large coal mining development.
