Applications & Permits
Environmental Approval
An Environment Approval is a permission required for the construction of a standard residential dwelling or non-construction purposes such as land clearance.
Environmental Consent
An Environment Consent is a permission granted to an applicant undertaking an activity that has some but not significant environment impact. A technical report must be provided.
EIA Permit
An Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) is a management tool used to identify the environmental, social and economic impacts of a project prior to decision making.
Permit for Trade Movement of Endangered Species
Any person planning to take any wild animal or plant overseas must apply for a permit for trade movement of endangered species (CITES).
The National Environment Service issues three main types of applications & permits for the purpose of environmental compliance:
- Environment Approval – provided for an activity that only has minimal environment impact
- Environment Consent – provided for an activity that has some but not significant environment impact. A technical report must be provided
- Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Permit – provided for an activity that is likely to cause significant environment impact. An EIA report must be provided with mandatory public consultation.
A Tier system has been developed to identify the different types of activities, free structure and definitions.
Furthermore, there are Other Permits issued by NES:
- Permit for transboundary movement of hazardous waste
- Licence to import biodegradable plastic bags
- Montreal Protocol Permit to import Bulk Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) goods
- CITES Permit for international trade of wild animals and plants
