COMMONWEALTH RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT BILL 2005

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 ii

Contents

Part 1--Preliminary

1 Short

title ...........................................................................................1

2 Commencement.................................................................................2

3 Definitions.........................................................................................2

Part 2--Selecting the site for a facility

4 Authority

conduct activities...........................................................3

Application of State and Territory laws.............................................4

Application of Commonwealth laws .................................................5

Part 3--Acquisition or extinguishment of rights and interests

7 Minister's

declarations ......................................................................6

Procedural fairness in relation to Minister's declarations..................6

9 Acquisition

extinguishment...........................................................7

Application of Commonwealth and Northern Territory laws ............7

Notice to Registrar-General...............................................................8

Part 4--Conducting activities in relation to selected site

12 Authority

conduct activities...........................................................9

Application of State and Territory laws...........................................10

Application of Commonwealth laws ...............................................11

Part 5--Miscellaneous

15 Compensation..................................................................................12

Compensation for acquisition of property .......................................12

17 Regulations......................................................................................12

Schedule 1--Sites

1 Mt

Everard site ..................................................................................1

2 Harts

Range site.................................................................................1

Fishers Ridge site ..............................................................................1

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 1

A Bill for an Act to make provision in relation to

the selection of a site for, and the establishment and

operation of, a radioactive waste management

facility, and for related purposes

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

Part 1--Preliminary

1 Short title

This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth Radioactive Waste

Management Act 2005.

Part 1 Preliminary

Section 2

2 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

2 Commencement

This Act commences on the day after it receives the Royal Assent.

3 Definitions

In this Act:

Commonwealth contractor means:

(a) a person who is a party to a contract with the Commonwealth

or a Commonwealth entity; or

(b) a person who is a subcontractor for a contract with the

Commonwealth or a Commonwealth entity.

Commonwealth entity means:

(a) a body corporate established for a public purpose by or under

an Act; or

(b) a company in which a controlling interest is held by any one

of the following persons, or any 2 or more of the following

persons together:

(i)

the

Commonwealth;

(ii) a body covered by paragraph (a).

controlled material has the meaning given by section 13 of the

Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act 1998.

facility means a facility for the management of controlled material

generated, possessed or controlled by the Commonwealth or a

Commonwealth entity.

site means a site described in Schedule 1.

subcontractor, for a contract, means a person who is a party to:

(a) a contract with a Commonwealth contractor (within the

meaning of paragraph (a) of the definition of Commonwealth

contractor); or

(b) a contract with another subcontractor (under a previous

application of this definition).

Selecting the site for a facility Part 2

Section 4

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 3

Part 2--Selecting the site for a facility

4 Authority to conduct activities

(1) This section applies to:

(a) the Commonwealth; and

(b) a Commonwealth entity; and

(d) an employee or agent of a person mentioned in paragraph (a),

(b) or (c).

(2) A person to whom this section applies may, in the Northern

Territory, do anything necessary for or incidental to the purposes

of selecting a site on which to construct and operate a facility.

(3) Without limiting subsection (2), the person may do any or all of the

following under that subsection (whether or not on a site):

(a) gain access to and enter land and drive vehicles or fly aircraft

to and from it;

(b) in order to drive vehicles to and from land--use existing

roads or construct roads on, or grade, land;

(d) operate drilling equipment;

(e)

extract

water;

(f) collect samples of flora and fauna;

(g) place monitoring equipment (including meteorological and

hydrological measuring equipment);

(h) build structures to protect bores, monitoring equipment or

other things;

(i) move or extract sand, gravel, soil, mineral and rock samples;

(j) conduct seismic or geological investigations;

(k) conduct archaeological or heritage investigations;

(l)

clear

vegetation.

(4) A person doing a thing under this Part on land that is not a site

must:

Part 2 Selecting the site for a facility

Section 5

4 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

(a) take all reasonable steps to ensure that the doing of the thing

causes as little detriment and inconvenience, and does as

little damage, as is practicable to the land and to anything on,

or growing or living on, the land; and

(b) remain on the land only for such period as is reasonably

necessary; and

which it was immediately before the thing was done.

5 Application of State and Territory laws

(1) A law, or a provision of a law, of a State or Territory (whether

written or unwritten), so far as it relates to:

(a) the use or proposed use of land or premises; or

(b) the environmental consequences of the use of land or

premises; or

objects (including the significance of land, premises or

objects in the traditions of Indigenous people); or

(d) controlled material, radioactive material or dangerous goods;

(e) licensing (however described) in relation to:

(i)

employment;

(ii) carrying on a particular kind of business or undertaking;

(iii) conducting a particular kind of operation or activity;

has no effect to the extent that it would, apart from this section,

regulate, hinder or prevent the doing of a thing authorised by

section 4.

(2) The regulations may prescribe a law, or a provision of a law, of a

State or Territory for the purposes of this subsection. The

prescribed law or provision has no effect to the extent that it

would, apart from this subsection, regulate, hinder or prevent the

doing of a thing authorised by section 4.

(3) Regulations made for the purposes of subsection (2) may prescribe

a law, or a provision of a law, whether or not it is a law or a

provision of a kind described in subsection (1).

Selecting the site for a facility Part 2

Section 6

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 5

(4) The regulations may prescribe a law, or a provision of a law, of a

State or Territory for the purposes of this subsection. The

prescribed law or provision has effect despite anything else in this

section.

6 Application of Commonwealth laws

(1) The following laws have no effect to the extent that they would,

apart from this section, regulate, hinder or prevent the doing of a

thing authorised by section 4:

(a)

the

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage

Protection Act 1984;

(b)

the

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation

Act 1999.

(2) The regulations may prescribe another law, or a provision of

another law, of the Commonwealth for the purposes of this

subsection. The prescribed law or provision has no effect to the

extent that it would, apart from this subsection, regulate, hinder or

prevent the doing of a thing authorised by section 4.

Part 3 Acquisition or extinguishment of rights and interests

Section 7

6 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

Part 3--Acquisition or extinguishment of rights

and interests

7 Minister's declarations

(1) The Minister may, in his or her absolute discretion, declare in

writing that one, or a specified part of one, of the sites is selected

as the site for a facility.

(2) The Minister may, in his or her absolute discretion, declare in

writing that all or specified rights or interests in land in the

Northern Territory specified in the declaration are required for

providing all-weather road access to the selected site (or selected

part of a site).

(3) A declaration has effect at the time specified in the declaration

(which must not be earlier than the time the declaration is made).

(4) A copy of a declaration must be published in the Gazette within 7

days of the declaration being made.

(5) Failure to comply with subsection (4) does not invalidate a

declaration.

(6) The Minister must not:

(a) make more than one declaration under subsection (1); or

(b) make more than one declaration under subsection (2).

(7) A declaration is not a legislative instrument.

8 Procedural fairness in relation to Minister's declarations

No person is entitled to procedural fairness in relation to the

Minister's making of a declaration.

Acquisition or extinguishment of rights and interests Part 3

Section 9

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 7

9 Acquisition or extinguishment

(1) At the time the declaration under subsection 7(1) has effect, any

rights or interests in the selected site (or selected part of a site) that

have not already been acquired by the Commonwealth, or

extinguished, are by force of this section:

(a) acquired by the Commonwealth or extinguished; and

(b) freed and discharged from all other rights and interests and

from all trusts, restrictions, dedications, reservations,

obligations, mortgages, encumbrances, contracts, licences,

charges and rates.

(2) To avoid doubt, the rights and interests acquired under or

extinguished by subsection (1) include:

(a) rights to minerals (if any); and

(b) native title rights and interests (if any).

(3) At the time the declaration under subsection 7(2) has effect, the

rights or interests in the specified land that are specified in the

declaration are, by force of this section:

(a) acquired by the Commonwealth or extinguished; and

(b) freed and discharged from all other rights and interests and

from all trusts, restrictions, dedications, reservations,

obligations, mortgages, encumbrances, contracts, licences,

charges and rates.

(4) To avoid doubt, rights and interests specified in the declaration

under subsection 7(2) may include any of the following:

(a) rights to minerals;

(b) native title rights and interests;

(d) an easement in gross.

10 Application of Commonwealth and Northern Territory laws

(1) Section 9 has effect despite any other law of the Commonwealth or

the Northern Territory (whether written or unwritten).

(2) Without limiting subsection (1), section 9 has effect despite the

following laws of the Commonwealth:

Part 3 Acquisition or extinguishment of rights and interests

Section 11

8 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

(a)

the

Lands Acquisition Act 1989;

(b)

the

Native Title Act 1993.

11 Notice to Registrar-General

(1) The Secretary of the Department may lodge with the

Registrar-General for the Northern Territory (or other appropriate

officer) a copy of a Minister's declaration under section 7, certified

by writing signed by the Secretary.

(2) The officer with whom the copy is lodged may deal with and give

effect to it as if it were a grant, conveyance, memorandum or

instrument of transfer of relevant rights and interests done under

the laws of the Northern Territory.

Conducting activities in relation to selected site Part 4

Section 12

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 9

Part 4--Conducting activities in relation to selected

site

12 Authority to conduct activities

(1) This section applies to:

(a) the Commonwealth; and

(b) a Commonwealth entity; and

(d) an employee or agent of a person mentioned in paragraph (a),

(b) or (c).

(2) A person to whom this section applies may, in relation to the

selected site (or selected part of a site), do anything necessary for

or incidental to any or all of the following:

(a) gathering or preparing information for a Commonwealth

regulatory scheme that relates to:

(i) the construction or operation of a facility; or

(ii) anything done in preparation for the construction or

operation of a facility;

(b) conducting activities that relate to gathering or preparing

information for such a regulatory scheme;

facility;

(d) preparing to construct and operate a facility;

(e)

constructing

facility;

(f) constructing roads on, or grading, land in the Northern

Territory;

(g) erecting fences and other access controls on land specified in

the declaration under subsection 7(2);

(h) operating a facility;

(i) maintaining a facility;

(j) keeping a facility safe;

(k) decommissioning a facility.

Part 4 Conducting activities in relation to selected site

Section 13

10 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

(3) Without limiting subsection (2), the person may, under that

subsection, do a thing mentioned in subsection 4(3) in relation to

the selected site (or selected part of a site).

(4) Subsection (2) extends to doing things outside the selected site (or

selected part of a site).

(5) A person to whom this section applies may, in relation to the

selected site (or selected part of a site):

(a) transport (including through a State or Territory) people and

materials (including controlled material) to or from a facility;

and

(b) use transport infrastructure for that transport.

13 Application of State and Territory laws

(1) A law, or a provision of a law, of a State or Territory (whether

written or unwritten), so far as it relates to:

(a) the use or proposed use of land or premises; or

(b) the environmental consequences of the use of land or

premises; or

objects (including the significance of land, premises or

objects in the traditions of Indigenous people); or

(d) controlled material, radioactive material or dangerous goods;

(e) licensing (however described) in relation to:

(i)

employment;

(ii) carrying on a particular kind of business or undertaking;

(iii) conducting a particular kind of operation or activity;

has no effect to the extent that it would, apart from this section,

regulate, hinder or prevent the doing of a thing authorised by

section 12.

(2) A law, or a provision of a law, of a State or Territory (whether

written or unwritten), so far as it relates to the transport of

controlled material, radioactive material or dangerous goods, has

Conducting activities in relation to selected site Part 4

Section 14

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 11

no effect to the extent that it would, apart from this section,

regulate, hinder or prevent transport authorised by section 12.

(3) The regulations may prescribe a law, or a provision of a law, of a

State or Territory for the purposes of this subsection. The

prescribed law or provision has no effect to the extent that it

would, apart from this subsection, regulate, hinder or prevent the

doing of a thing authorised by section 12.

(4) Regulations made for the purposes of subsection (3) may prescribe

a law, or a provision of a law, whether or not it is a law or a

provision of a kind described in subsection (1) or (2).

(5) The regulations may prescribe a law, or a provision of a law, of a

State or Territory for the purposes of this subsection. The

prescribed law or provision has effect despite anything else in this

section.

14 Application of Commonwealth laws

(1) The regulations may prescribe a law, or a provision of a law, of the

Commonwealth for the purposes of this subsection. The prescribed

law or provision has no effect to the extent that it would, apart

from this subsection, regulate, hinder or prevent the doing of a

thing authorised by section 12.

(2) The regulations must not prescribe any of the following laws, or

any provision of the following laws:

(a)

the

Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Act

1998;

(b)

the

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation

Act 1999;

(c)

the

Nuclear Non-Proliferation (Safeguards) Act 1987.

Part 5 Miscellaneous

Section 15

12 Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005

Part 5--Miscellaneous

15 Compensation

(1) If rights or interests are acquired, extinguished or otherwise

affected under section 9, the Commonwealth is liable to pay a

reasonable amount of compensation to a person whose right or

interest has been acquired, extinguished or otherwise affected.

(2) If the Commonwealth and the person do not agree on the amount

of the compensation, the person may institute proceedings in the

Federal Court of Australia for the recovery from the

Commonwealth of such reasonable amount of compensation as the

court determines.

16 Compensation for acquisition of property

(1) If the operation of this Act would result in an acquisition of

property from a person otherwise than on just terms, the

Commonwealth is liable to pay a reasonable amount of

compensation to the person.

(2) If the Commonwealth and the person do not agree on the amount

of the compensation, the person may institute proceedings in the

Federal Court of Australia for the recovery from the

Commonwealth of such reasonable amount of compensation as the

court determines.

(3) In this section:

acquisition of property has the same meaning as in paragraph

51(xxxi) of the Constitution.

just terms has the same meaning as in paragraph 51(xxxi) of the

Constitution.

17 Regulations

The Governor-General may make regulations prescribing matters:

Commonwealth Radioactive Waste Management Bill 2005 No. , 2005 1

Schedule 1--Sites

Note:

See the definition of site in section 3.

1 Mt Everard site

The land being Northern Territory Portion 1502 delineated on

Survey Plan S74/123.

2 Harts Range site

The land being Northern Territory Portion 1503 delineated on

Survey Plan S74/124.

3 Fishers Ridge site

The land being Northern Territory Portion 3260 delineated on

Survey Plan S86/252

Commonwealth of Australia Bills

COMMONWEALTH RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT BILL 2005