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New South Wales
Threatened Species Conservation
Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
Contents
Page
1 Name of Act 2
2 Commencement 2
Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation
Act 1995 No 101 3
b2010-102-32.d22
New South Wales
Threatened Species Conservation
Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
No , 2011
A Bill for
An Act to amend the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 to provide for an
accreditation scheme in respect of persons who prepare or carry out species impact
statements and other ecological assessments and surveys.
Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Clause 1 Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
The Legislature of New South Wales enacts: 1
1 Name of Act 2
This Act is the Threatened Species Conservation Amendment 3
(Ecological Consultants Accreditation Scheme) Act 2011. 4
2 Commencement 5
This Act commences on the date of assent to this Act. 6
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species 1
Conservation Act 1995 No 101 2
[1] Section 113 Director-General may accredit persons to prepare species 3
impact statements 4
Omit the section. 5
[2] Part 8A 6
Insert after Part 8: 7
Part 8A Ecological consultant accreditation 8
scheme 9
Division 1 Preliminary 10
137 Definitions 11
In this Part: 12
accreditation panel means the accreditation panel established 13
under this Part. 14
accredited ecological consultant means a person who is 15
accredited as an ecological consultant under this Part and whose 16
accreditation is in force. 17
Chief Executive means the Chief Executive of the Office of 18
Environment and Heritage, Department of Premier and Cabinet. 19
ecological assessment means any of the following: 20
(a) an environmental assessment, or part of an environmental 21
assessment, carried out for the purposes of compliance 22
with the environmental assessment requirements under 23
Part 3A of the Planning Act that relates to biodiversity 24
values or the impact of a project on biodiversity values, 25
(b) an environmental impact statement, or part of an 26
environmental impact statement, prepared for the purposes 27
of compliance with Part 4 or 5 of the Planning Act that 28
relates to biodiversity values or the impact of a 29
development or activity on biodiversity values, 30
(c) any other assessment, or part of an assessment, prepared to 31
assist a consent authority in deciding under the Planning 32
Act whether something is likely to have a significant effect 33
on threatened species, populations or ecological 34
communities, or their habitats, 35
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
(d) a species impact statement referred to in Division 2 of 1
Part 6 or in Part 7A of the Fisheries Management Act 2
1994, 3
(e) any survey or assessment of biodiversity values or of the 4
impact of a proposal on biodiversity values prepared or 5
carried out for the purposes of this Act or Part 7A of the 6
Fisheries Management Act 1994 (such as for use in 7
connection with biodiversity certification or the 8
biobanking scheme), 9
(f) any other document or activity prescribed by the 10
regulations. 11
ecological consultant means any person who is engaged or 12
employed to prepare or carry out an ecological assessment. 13
specialist ecological consultant means an accredited ecological 14
consultant who has specialist accreditation under this Part and 15
whose specialist accreditation is in force. 16
Division 2 Accreditation 17
138 Ecological consultants must be accredited 18
An ecological assessment is to be prepared and carried out by an 19
ecological consultant only if the ecological consultant is 20
accredited under this Part. 21
Note. For offences, see Division 5. This Part does not require an 22
employee or other person who prepares an ecological assessment 23
under the supervision of an accredited ecological consultant to also be 24
accredited. 25
138A Eligibility for accreditation 26
(1) The regulations may make provision for or with respect to 27
eligibility for accreditation as an ecological consultant. 28
(2) Without limiting the above, the regulations may impose 29
continuing requirements in respect of eligibility for accreditation, 30
including continuing professional education requirements. 31
(3) Only natural persons are eligible for accreditation. 32
138B Specialist accreditation 33
(1) The regulations may specify the types of ecological assessment 34
(if any) that require specialist accreditation. 35
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
(2) An accredited ecological consultant is authorised to prepare or 1
carry out an ecological assessment that requires specialist 2
accreditation only if the ecological consultant has that specialist 3
accreditation. 4
(3) The regulations may make provision for or with respect to 5
eligibility for accreditation as a specialist ecological consultant. 6
(4) Without limiting the above, the regulations may impose 7
continuing requirements in respect of eligibility for specialist 8
accreditation, including continuing professional education 9
requirements. 10
(5) Only natural persons are eligible for specialist accreditation. 11
138C Accreditation panel to be consulted on eligibility criteria 12
(1) A regulation that makes provision for or with respect to eligibility 13
for accreditation as an ecological consultant (including specialist 14
accreditation) may be made only on the recommendation of the 15
Minister. 16
(2) Before the Minister recommends the making of a regulation that 17
makes provision for or with respect to eligibility for accreditation 18
as an ecological consultant, the Minister must: 19
(a) refer the proposed regulation to the accreditation panel for 20
comment, and 21
(b) consider any comment or recommendation made by the 22
accreditation panel in respect of the proposed regulation. 23
138D Application for accreditation 24
(1) A person may apply to the Chief Executive for accreditation as 25
an ecological consultant. 26
(2) An application for accreditation as an ecological consultant must: 27
(a) be made in the manner and form approved by the Chief 28
Executive, and 29
(b) be supported by any information required by the Chief 30
Executive, and 31
(c) be accompanied by the application fee (if any) prescribed 32
by the regulations. 33
(3) An application for accreditation that is duly made is to be referred 34
by the Chief Executive to the accreditation panel. 35
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
(4) If the accreditation panel considers it necessary in order to 1
determine the eligibility of an applicant for accreditation, the 2
accreditation panel may require the applicant to do one or both of 3
the following: 4
(a) furnish to the accreditation panel, within a specified time, 5
any further particulars that the accreditation panel 6
considers necessary, 7
(b) appear before the accreditation panel for an interview. 8
(5) The accreditation panel is to make a recommendation to the Chief 9
Executive regarding the eligibility of an applicant for 10
accreditation. 11
(6) The Chief Executive, in determining whether the applicant is 12
eligible for accreditation, is to have regard to the 13
recommendation of the accreditation panel. 14
138E Grant of accreditation 15
(1) The Chief Executive is to determine an application for 16
accreditation as an ecological consultant by granting 17
accreditation or refusing accreditation. 18
(2) The Chief Executive may refuse to grant accreditation: 19
(a) if the applicant fails to comply with this Part or a 20
requirement made under this Part, or 21
(b) if, in the opinion of the Chief Executive, the applicant is 22
not eligible for accreditation, or 23
(c) if, within the period of 2 years before the date the 24
application was made, the Chief Executive revoked or 25
refused to renew the applicant's accreditation as an 26
ecological consultant, or 27
(d) on any other grounds prescribed by the regulations. 28
(3) The Chief Executive must give notice in writing of the 29
determination of the application to the applicant, including: 30
(a) if accreditation is granted, notice of any conditions to 31
which the accreditation is subject, and 32
(b) if accreditation is refused, the reasons for the refusal. 33
138F Renewal of accreditation 34
(1) Accreditation as an ecological consultant may be renewed by the 35
Chief Executive on application by the ecological consultant. 36
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
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Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
(2) This Part applies, with any necessary modifications, to an 1
application for renewal of accreditation in the same way as it 2
applies to an application for accreditation. 3
Note. Accordingly, the application would be referred to the accreditation 4
panel for a recommendation as to eligibility. 5
(3) The Chief Executive is to determine an application for renewal of 6
accreditation as an ecological consultant by renewing 7
accreditation or refusing to renew accreditation. 8
(4) The Chief Executive may refuse to renew accreditation as an 9
ecological consultant: 10
(a) if the applicant fails to comply with this Part or a 11
requirement made under this Part, or 12
(b) if, in the opinion of the Chief Executive, the applicant is no 13
longer eligible for accreditation, or 14
(c) if, in the opinion of the Chief Executive, there are grounds 15
for the suspension or revocation of accreditation, or 16
(d) on any other grounds prescribed by the regulations. 17
(5) The Chief Executive must not refuse to renew accreditation of a 18
person unless, before doing so: 19
(a) the Chief Executive gives the person notice in writing of 20
his or her intention to do so, specifying the reasons for his 21
or her decision, and 22
(b) the Chief Executive gives the person a reasonable 23
opportunity to make submissions in relation to the 24
proposed refusal to renew, and 25
(c) the Chief Executive takes into consideration any 26
submissions made by the person. 27
(6) The Chief Executive must give notice in writing to the applicant 28
of the determination of an application for renewal of 29
accreditation, including: 30
(a) if accreditation is renewed, any conditions to which the 31
accreditation is subject, and 32
(b) if the application is refused, the reasons for the refusal. 33
(7) If an application for renewal of an accreditation that is in force is 34
made to the Chief Executive before the expiry of the existing 35
accreditation, the accreditation remains in force until notice in 36
writing of the determination of the application is given to the 37
applicant. 38
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
138G Duration of accreditation 1
(1) An accreditation remains in force, subject to this Part, for a period 2
of 3 years from the date on which it is granted or renewed, unless 3
sooner revoked. 4
(2) Accreditation does not have effect during the period of any 5
suspension. 6
138H Conditions of accreditation 7
(1) The Chief Executive may grant accreditation or a renewal of 8
accreditation unconditionally or subject to conditions. 9
(2) In addition, at any time while the accreditation is in force or 10
suspended, the Chief Executive may, on a recommendation made 11
by the accreditation panel following a peer review, by notice in 12
writing given to the ecological consultant: 13
(a) impose conditions or further conditions on the 14
accreditation, or 15
(b) vary or revoke any of the conditions to which the 16
accreditation is subject. 17
(3) A condition imposed by the Chief Executive, or the variation or 18
revocation of a condition, takes effect on the date specified in the 19
notice or on the date on which it is given to the ecological 20
consultant, whichever is the later. 21
(4) The regulations may impose a condition on an accreditation or 22
class of accreditation. 23
(5) A condition imposed by the regulations cannot be varied or 24
revoked by the Chief Executive and prevails to the extent of any 25
inconsistency over a condition imposed by the Chief Executive 26
under this Part. 27
138I Accreditation fee 28
The regulations may require an accreditation fee to be paid to the 29
Chief Executive, in respect of a grant or renewal of accreditation, 30
within a time determined by the Chief Executive. 31
138J Revocation or suspension of accreditation 32
(1) The Chief Executive may, by notice in writing given to a person, 33
suspend or revoke the person's accreditation if the Chief 34
Executive is of the opinion that one or more of the following 35
grounds exist: 36
(a) the person is no longer eligible for accreditation as an 37
ecological consultant, 38
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Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
(b) the person has not satisfied any continuing professional 1
education requirements that apply to accredited ecological 2
consultants, 3
(c) the person has contravened: 4
(i) any of the provisions of this Part, or 5
(ii) any of the provisions of the regulations, or 6
(iii) a condition to which the accreditation is subject, 7
(d) the accreditation panel makes a recommendation, 8
following a peer review, that the person's accreditation be 9
suspended or revoked, 10
(e) the person provided false or misleading information in 11
connection with an application for accreditation or renewal 12
of accreditation, 13
(f) the person fails to pay an accreditation fee within the time 14
determined by the Chief Executive, or such further time as 15
the Chief Executive may allow, 16
(g) any other ground prescribed by the regulations. 17
(2) The Chief Executive must not suspend or revoke accreditation of 18
a person unless, before doing so: 19
(a) the Chief Executive gives the person notice in writing of 20
his or her intention to do so, specifying the reasons for his 21
or her decision, and 22
(b) the Chief Executive gives the person a reasonable 23
opportunity to make submissions in relation to the 24
proposed revocation or suspension, and 25
(c) the Chief Executive takes into consideration any 26
submissions made by the person. 27
(3) The Chief Executive must give notice in writing to an accredited 28
ecological consultant of the revocation or suspension of his or her 29
accreditation, including the reasons for the revocation or 30
suspension. 31
(4) A suspension of accreditation of a person has effect on the date 32
notice of the suspension is given to the person, or on a later date 33
specified in the notice. 34
(5) If a person's accreditation is suspended until the fulfilment of 35
specified conditions, the Chief Executive must give the person 36
notice in writing that the accreditation is reinstated as soon as 37
practicable after he or she is satisfied that the specified conditions 38
have been fulfilled. 39
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Accreditation Scheme) Bill 2011
Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
(6) A revocation of accreditation of a person takes effect on the date 1
on which notice of the revocation is given to the person, or on a 2
later date specified in the notice. 3
(7) The Chief Executive may revoke an accreditation that is 4
suspended. 5
138K Right to seek review from Administrative Decisions Tribunal 6
A person may apply to the Administrative Decisions Tribunal for 7
a review of the following decisions: 8
(a) a decision of the Chief Executive to refuse to grant the 9
person accreditation as an ecological consultant, 10
(b) a decision of the Chief Executive to refuse to grant the 11
person accreditation as a specialist ecological consultant, 12
(c) a decision of the Chief Executive to refuse to renew the 13
person's accreditation as an ecological consultant, 14
(d) a decision of the Chief Executive to impose, vary or revoke 15
any conditions of the person's accreditation as an 16
ecological consultant, 17
(e) a decision of the Chief Executive to revoke or suspend the 18
person's accreditation as an ecological consultant. 19
138L Chief Executive to keep register of ecological consultants 20
(1) The Chief Executive is to keep a register of ecological 21
consultants. 22
(2) The Chief Executive is to cause the following to be recorded in 23
the register: 24
(a) the name and contact details of each accredited ecological 25
consultant, 26
(b) the name and contact details of each accredited specialist 27
ecological consultant, 28
(c) the particulars of accreditation, including any conditions 29
of accreditation imposed by the Chief Executive, 30
(d) the following matters in relation to an ecological 31
consultant whose accreditation has been suspended or 32
revoked: 33
(i) the name of the ecological consultant, 34
(ii) the name of the employer of the ecological 35
consultant, 36
(e) such other information relating to accreditation as the 37
Chief Executive considers appropriate. 38
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Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
(3) The Chief Executive is to cause the register to be made available 1
for public inspection on the website of the Office of Environment 2
and Heritage. 3
Division 3 Accreditation panel 4
138M Accreditation panel 5
(1) There is to be an accreditation panel. 6
(2) The accreditation panel is to consist of the following members: 7
(a) the Chief Executive or an officer of the Office of 8
Environment and Heritage nominated from time to time by 9
the Chief Executive, who is to be Chairperson of the panel, 10
(b) 4 or more appointed members, being persons appointed by 11
the Chief Executive as members who are not officers of the 12
Office of Environment and Heritage. 13
(3) Each appointed member must be a person who, in the opinion of 14
the Chief Executive, is an expert in biodiversity values. 15
(4) An appointed member of the accreditation panel holds office for 16
such period (not exceeding 5 years) as is specified in the 17
member's instrument of appointment, but is eligible (if otherwise 18
qualified) for re-appointment. 19
(5) The Chief Executive may remove an appointed member from the 20
accreditation panel at any time by giving the member notice in 21
writing. 22
(6) An appointed member of the accreditation panel is entitled to 23
such allowances in connection with the work of the panel as the 24
Chief Executive approves in respect of the member. 25
138N Functions of accreditation panel 26
(1) The functions of the accreditation panel are: 27
(a) to make recommendations to the Chief Executive 28
regarding the eligibility of an applicant for accreditation 29
(including specialist accreditation), and 30
(b) to make recommendations to the Minister regarding any 31
regulation that makes provision for eligibility for 32
accreditation as an ecological consultant (including 33
specialist accreditation), and 34
(c) to conduct peer reviews of ecological assessments carried 35
out by ecological consultants, and 36
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
(d) to make recommendations to the Chief Executive 1
following such peer reviews, and 2
(e) to provide such other advice to the Chief Executive as the 3
Chief Executive may request. 4
(2) The accreditation panel has such other functions as are conferred 5
or imposed on the panel by or under this or any other Act. 6
(3) Anything done or omitted to be done by a member of the 7
accreditation panel in exercising the functions of the panel or 8
member under this Act does not, if the thing was done or omitted 9
to be done in good faith, subject the member personally to any 10
action, liability, claim or demand. 11
138O Procedure of accreditation panel 12
The procedure of the accreditation panel is to be determined by 13
the Chief Executive or (subject to any determination of the Chief 14
Executive) by the accreditation panel. 15
138P Disclosure of relevant interests 16
(1) If: 17
(a) a member has a relevant interest in a matter being 18
considered or about to be considered by the accreditation 19
panel, and 20
(b) the interest appears to raise a conflict with the proper 21
performance of the member's duties in relation to the 22
consideration of the matter, 23
the member must, as soon as possible after the relevant facts have 24
come to the member's knowledge, disclose the nature of the 25
interest to the accreditation panel. 26
(2) A disclosure by a member to the accreditation panel that the 27
member: 28
(a) is a member, or is in the employment, of a specified 29
company or other body, or 30
(b) is a partner, or is in the employment, of a specified person, 31
or 32
(c) has some other specified interest relating to a specified 33
company or other body or to a specified person, 34
is a sufficient disclosure of the nature of the interest in any matter 35
relating to that company or other body or to that person which 36
may arise after the date of the disclosure and which is required to 37
be disclosed under subsection (1). 38
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Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101 Schedule 1
(3) Particulars of any disclosure made under this section must be 1
recorded by the accreditation panel in a book kept for that 2
purpose and that book must be open at all reasonable hours for 3
inspection by any person on payment of the fee determined by the 4
accreditation panel. 5
(4) After a member has disclosed the nature of an interest in any 6
matter, the member must not, unless the Chief Executive or the 7
accreditation panel otherwise determines: 8
(a) be present during any deliberation of the accreditation 9
panel with respect to the matter, or 10
(b) take part in any decision of the accreditation panel with 11
respect to the matter. 12
(5) For the purposes of the making of a determination by the 13
accreditation panel under subsection (4), a member who has a 14
relevant interest in a matter to which the disclosure relates must 15
not: 16
(a) be present during any deliberation of the accreditation 17
panel for the purpose of making the determination, or 18
(b) take part in the making by the accreditation panel of the 19
determination. 20
(6) A contravention of this section does not invalidate any decision 21
of the accreditation panel. 22
(7) A member has a relevant interest in a matter if: 23
(a) the member has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in the 24
matter, or 25
(b) the member is related to a person involved in the matter. 26
(8) A member of the accreditation panel is related to a person for the 27
purposes of this section if the member: 28
(a) is an employer, partner or employee of the person, or 29
(b) is a spouse, de facto partner, sibling, parent or child of the 30
person, or 31
(c) has a contractual arrangement with the person that might 32
reasonably be seen to give rise to a conflict between the 33
member's duties as a member of the accreditation panel 34
and the member's interests under the arrangement, or 35
(d) is employed by the same employer as the person. 36
Note. De facto partner is defined in section 21C of the Interpretation Act 37
1987. 38
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
Division 4 Peer reviews 1
138Q Referral of ecological assessment to accreditation panel for peer 2
review 3
(1) The following persons may request the accreditation panel to 4
review an ecological assessment carried out by an ecological 5
consultant: 6
(a) any accredited ecological consultant, 7
(b) any consent authority, 8
(c) any other person, but only if that person's request is 9
supported by an accredited ecological consultant or a 10
consent authority. 11
(2) A request may relate to more than one ecological assessment. 12
(3) A request may be made only on the following grounds: 13
(a) that the ecological assessment does not conform to 14
industry best practice, 15
(b) any other grounds provided for by the regulations. 16
(4) The regulations may make further provision for review requests, 17
including requiring a fee to be paid in connection with a review 18
request. 19
138R Peer review 20
(1) The accreditation panel may, following a request made in 21
accordance with this Division, conduct a review of any 22
ecological assessment carried out by an ecological consultant. 23
(2) This review is a peer review. 24
(3) In a peer review, the accreditation panel may assess the quality of 25
the work of the ecological consultant, in relation to but not 26
limited by the following: 27
(a) the ecological consultant's methodology in preparing an 28
ecological assessment, 29
(b) the species identification skills of the ecological 30
consultant, 31
(c) the ecological consultant's ability to develop and advise on 32
appropriate management and mitigation measures. 33
(4) Following a peer review, the accreditation panel may make any 34
of the following recommendations to the Chief Executive: 35
(a) that the accreditation, or specialist accreditation, of the 36
ecological consultant be revoked or suspended, 37
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(b) that conditions or further conditions be imposed on the 1
accreditation of the ecological consultant or that existing 2
conditions be varied or revoked. 3
(5) The accreditation panel may refuse to carry out a peer review if 4
it is of the opinion that the review request is frivolous or 5
vexatious. 6
Division 5 Offences 7
138S Ecological consultant must be accredited under this Part 8
(1) A person must not: 9
(a) prepare or carry out an ecological assessment unless the 10
person is an accredited ecological consultant, or 11
(b) make any representation, or cause or allow any 12
representation to be made, to the effect that he or she is 13
able to prepare or carry out an ecological assessment 14
unless the person is an accredited ecological consultant. 15
Maximum penalty: 600 penalty units. 16
(2) A person must not: 17
(a) prepare or carry out an ecological assessment that requires 18
specialist accreditation, unless the person is a specialist 19
ecological consultant authorised to prepare or carry out the 20
ecological assessment, or 21
(b) make any representation, or cause or allow any 22
representation to be made, to the effect that he or she is 23
able to prepare or carry out an ecological assessment that 24
requires specialist accreditation, unless the person is a 25
specialist ecological consultant authorised to prepare or 26
carry out the ecological assessment. 27
Maximum penalty: 600 penalty units. 28
(3) A person who prepares or carries out, or assists in preparing or 29
carrying out, an ecological assessment does not commit an 30
offence against this section if the person is acting in accordance 31
with the directions of, or under the supervision of, an accredited 32
consultant authorised to prepare or carry out the ecological 33
assessment. 34
(4) This section does not apply: 35
(a) to a Minister when exercising functions conferred by this 36
Act, the Planning Act or any other law, or 37
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Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
(b) to an officer of the Crown when exercising functions 1
conferred by this Act, the Planning Act or any other law, or 2
(c) to other such persons or in such other circumstances as 3
may be prescribed by the regulations. 4
138T False representations 5
A person must not make any representation, or cause or allow any 6
representation to be made: 7
(a) to the effect that the person is accredited under this Part 8
unless the person is an accredited ecological consultant, or 9
(b) to the effect that the person has specialist accreditation 10
under this Part, unless the person is a specialist ecological 11
consultant. 12
Maximum penalty: 600 penalty units. 13
Division 6 Responsibilities of ecological consultants 14
138U Ecological consultant to avoid conflicts of interest 15
(1) An ecological consultant must not carry out an ecological 16
assessment: 17
(a) if he or she is or is related to a person by whom any part of 18
any land to which the assessment is related is owned or 19
occupied, or 20
(b) if he or she has a pecuniary interest in any part of the land 21
to which the assessment relates, in any activity carried out 22
on the land or in any development or activity to which the 23
assessment relates, or 24
(c) if it involves the ecological consultant reviewing any 25
aspect of any work carried out by, or a report written by, 26
the ecological consultant or a person to whom the 27
ecological consultant is related. 28
(2) An ecological consultant has a pecuniary interest for the purposes 29
of this section if there is a reasonable likelihood or expectation of 30
appreciable financial gain or loss to the ecological consultant, or 31
to a person to whom he or she is related, from the relevant land, 32
activity or development. However, an ecological consultant does 33
not have such an interest if the interest is so remote or 34
insignificant that it could not reasonably be regarded as likely to 35
influence any decision that the ecological consultant might make 36
in relation to an ecological assessment. 37
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(3) An ecological consultant is related to a person for the purposes of 1
this section if the ecological consultant: 2
(a) is an employer, partner or employee of the person, or 3
(b) is a spouse, de facto partner, sibling, parent or child of the 4
person, or 5
(c) has a contractual arrangement with the person that might 6
reasonably be seen to give rise to a conflict between the 7
ecological consultant's duties as an ecological consultant 8
and the ecological consultant's interests under the 9
arrangement, or 10
(d) is employed by the same employer as the person. 11
Note. De facto partner is defined in section 21C of the Interpretation 12
Act 1987. 13
(4) Contravention of this section is not an offence but is grounds for 14
the suspension or revocation of accreditation as an ecological 15
consultant. 16
138V Other regulations 17
The regulations may make further provision with respect to the 18
responsibilities of ecological consultants, including: 19
(a) a code of conduct for ecological consultants, and 20
(b) record-keeping requirements for accredited ecological 21
consultants. 22
[3] Section 136A References to Minister and Director-General 23
Renumber the section as section 139. 24
[4] Section 142B Director-General may accredit persons to prepare 25
assessments and surveys 26
Omit the section. 27
[5] Schedule 7 Savings, transitional and other provisions 28
Insert at the end of clause 1 (1): 29
Threatened Species Conservation Amendment (Ecological 30
Consultants Accreditation Scheme) Act 2011 31
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Schedule 1 Amendment of Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 No 101
[6] Schedule 7 1
Insert after Part 8: 2
Part 9 Provisions consequent on enactment of 3
Threatened Species Conservation 4
Amendment (Ecological Consultants 5
Accreditation Scheme) Act 2011 6
33 Accreditation of ecological consultants 7
Part 8A of the Threatened Species Conservation Amendment 8
(Ecological Consultants Accreditation Scheme) Act 2011 does 9
not apply to any ecological assessment that was submitted by a 10
person to a consent authority, or to any other person on whose 11
behalf it was prepared, before the commencement of that Act. 12
34 Phasing-in of offence 13
(1) Sections 138 and 138S, as inserted by the Threatened Species 14
Conservation Amendment (Ecological Consultants Accreditation 15
Scheme) Act 2011, do not take effect until the date that is 16
6 months after the date regulations made under section 138A 17
(Eligibility for accreditation) take effect. 18
(2) A person does not commit an offence against section 138S if the 19
person duly applies for accreditation before the date that 20
section 138A takes effect and the act or omission constituting the 21
offence occurs before the application is finally determined by the 22
Chief Executive. 23
(3) The Minister is to ensure that the making of a regulation under 24
section 138A is recommended to the Governor within 6 months 25
after the date of assent to the Threatened Species Conservation 26
Amendment (Ecological Consultants Accreditation Scheme) Act 27
2011. 28
Page 18
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