New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

STATE ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING POLICY (MINING, PETROLEUM PRODUCTION AND EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES) 2007 - REG 3

3 Interpretation

(1) A word or expression used in this Policy has the same meaning as it has in the standard instrument prescribed by the Standard Instrument (Local Environmental Plans) Order 2006 unless it is otherwise defined in this Policy.

(2) In this Policy:
"approved", in relation to any development or any use of land, means development or a use:

(a) for which any required development consent under Part 4 of the Act, or approval under Part 3A of the Act, has been granted (being a consent or approval that is in force), or

(b) that does not require any such development consent or approval under the Act and regulations.

"Commissioner" means the Western Lands Commissioner holding office as such under Chapter 1A of the Public Sector Employment and Management Act 2002 .
"environmental conservation zone" means a zone identified in another environmental planning instrument as having protection or conservation of the environment, or of an aspect of the environment, as its only objective or as a principal objective.

Note: See, for example, Zone E2 Environmental Conservation in the standard instrument prescribed by Standard Instrument (Local Environmental Plans) Order 2006 .

"environmentally sensitive area of State significance" means:

(a) coastal waters of the State, or

(b) land to which State Environmental Planning Policy No 14-Coastal Wetlands or State Environmental Planning Policy No 26-Littoral Rainforests applies, or

(c) land reserved as an aquatic reserve under the Fisheries Management Act 1994 or as a marine park under the Marine Parks Act 1997 , or

(d) land within a wetland of international significance declared under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands or within a World heritage area declared under the World Heritage Convention, or

(e) land identified in an environmental planning instrument as being of high Aboriginal cultural significance or high biodiversity significance, or

(f) land reserved as a state conservation area under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 , or

(g) land, places, buildings or structures listed on the State Heritage Register, or

(h) land reserved or dedicated under the Crown Lands Act 1989 for the preservation of flora, fauna, geological formations or for other environmental protection purposes, or

(i) land identified as being critical habitat under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 or Part 7A of the Fisheries Management Act 1994 .

"exploration" and "prospecting" include the taking of samples, and the assessment of deposits, of minerals, petroleum and extractive materials.
"extractive industry" means the winning or removal of extractive materials (otherwise than from a mine) by methods such as excavating, dredging, or quarrying, including the storing, stockpiling or processing of extractive materials by methods such as recycling, washing, crushing, sawing or separating, but does not include:

(a) turf farming, or

(b) tunnelling for the purpose of an approved infrastructure development, or

(c) cut and fill operations, or the digging of foundations, ancillary to approved development, or

(d) the creation of a farm dam if the material extracted in the creation of the dam is used on site and not removed from the site.

"extractive material" means sand, gravel, clay, soil, rock, stone or similar substances but does not include turf.
"industry" means the manufacturing, production, assembling, altering, formulating, repairing, renovating, ornamenting, finishing, cleaning, washing, dismantling, transforming, processing or adapting, or the research and development of, any goods, chemical substances, food, agricultural or beverage products, or articles for commercial purposes, but does not include a mine, petroleum production facility or extractive industry.
"mineral" means any substance prescribed by the regulations under the Mining Act 1992 as a mineral for the purposes of the definition of "mineral" in that Act, and includes coal and oil shale, but does not include uranium or petroleum.
"mineral exploration" means prospecting pursuant to an assessment lease, exploration licence, mineral claim, mining lease or opal prospecting licence under the Mining Act 1992 or exploration pursuant to an exploration licence, mining licence or retention licence under the Offshore Minerals Act 1999 .
"mining" means the winning or removal of materials by methods such as excavating, dredging, or tunnelling for the purpose of obtaining minerals, and includes:

(a) the construction, operation and decommissioning of associated works, and

(b) the stockpiling, processing, treatment and transportation of materials extracted, and

(c) the rehabilitation of land affected by mining.

"open cut mining" means mining carried out on, and by excavating, the earth’s surface but does not include underground mining.
"petroleum" means:

(a) any naturally occurring hydrocarbon, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state, or

(b) any naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbons, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state, or

(c) any naturally occurring mixture of one or more hydrocarbons, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state, and one or more of the following, that is to say, hydrogen sulphide, nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide and water,

and includes any substance referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) that has been returned to a natural reservoir, but does not include coal or oil shale or any substance prescribed to be a mineral for the purposes of the Mining Act 1992 .
"petroleum exploration" means prospecting pursuant to an exploration licence, assessment lease or production lease under the Petroleum (Onshore) Act 1991 or exploration pursuant to an exploration permit, retention lease or production licence under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982 .
"petroleum production" means the recovery, obtaining or removal of petroleum pursuant to a production lease under the Petroleum (Onshore) Act 1991 or a production licence under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982 , and includes:

(a) the construction, operation and decommissioning of associated petroleum related works, and

(b) the drilling and operation of wells, and

(c) the rehabilitation of land affected by petroleum production.

"petroleum related works" means any works, structures or equipment that are ancillary or incidental to petroleum production and includes all works, structures and equipment that a production lease under the Petroleum (Onshore) Act 1991 , or a production licence under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982 , entitles the lease or licence holder to construct, maintain or execute.
"state conservation area" means a state conservation area reserved under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 .
"the Act" means the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 .
"underground mining" means:

(a) mining carried out beneath the earth’s surface, including bord and pillar mining, longwall mining, top-level caving, sub-level caving and auger mining, and

(b) shafts, drill holes, gas and water drainage works, surface rehabilitation works and access pits associated with that mining (whether carried out on or beneath the earth’s surface),

but does not include open cut mining.
"Western Division" has the same meaning as in the Crown Lands Act 1989 .

(3) Notes included in this Policy do not form part of this Policy.