Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated ActsIn this Act:
"1 April" , when used in the safeguard provisions, means:
(a) if the 1 April concerned is a business day--that 1 April; or
(b) if the 1 April concerned is not a business day--the first business day after that 1 April.
"5-year rolling average safeguard emissions" , for a financial year, means the amount, in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence, that is one fifth of the total amount of safeguard emissions for the 5 previous financial years.
"account number" , in relation to a Registry account, has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 .
"activity" includes:
(a) a condition; or
(b) a circumstance; or
(c) a state of affairs;
relating to:
(d) solid waste; or
(e) carbon capture and storage; or
(f) other storage; or
(g) stockpiling; or
(h) any other matter or thing.
"approved by the Regulator" means approved by the Regulator, in writing, for the purposes of the provision in which the term occurs.
Note: For variation and revocation, see subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 .
"associated provisions" means the following provisions:
(a) the provisions of a legislative instrument made under this Act;
(b) the provisions of a legislative instrument made under the regulations;
(c) sections 134.1, 134.2, 135.1, 135.2, 135.4, 136.1, 137.1 and 137.2 of the Criminal Code , in so far as those sections relate to:
(i) this Act; or
(ii) a legislative instrument made under this Act; or
(iii) a legislative instrument made under the regulations.
"audit information" means information obtained by or on behalf of an audit team leader in the course of carrying out a greenhouse and energy audit.
"audit team leader" means a registered greenhouse and energy auditor appointed to carry out a greenhouse and energy audit or a safeguard audit.
"audit team member" , in relation to a greenhouse and energy audit or a safeguard audit, means a person assisting the audit team leader to carry out the audit.
"Australian carbon credit unit" has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 .
"Australia's greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets" means:
(a) if:
(i) Australia's current nationally determined contribution was communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement in June 2022; and
(ii) that nationally determined contribution has not been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement;
the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets set out in paragraphs 10(1)(a) and (b) of the Climate Change Act 2022 ; or
(b) in any other case--the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets included in:
(i) Australia's current nationally determined contribution communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement; or
(ii) if that nationally determined contribution has been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement--that nationally determined contribution, as adjusted and in force from time to time.
"authorised officer" means an officer appointed under section 57.
"avoid" , in relation to emissions of greenhouse gases, includes reduce or eliminate.
"baseline emissions number" has the meaning given by section 22XL.
"biodiversity audit" has the same meaning as in the Nature Repair Act 2023 .
"biodiversity audit report" has the same meaning as in the Nature Repair Act 2023 .
"business day" means a day that is not:
(a) a Saturday; or
(b) a Sunday; or
(c) a public holiday in the Australian Capital Territory.
"business unit" has the meaning given by the regulations.
"carbon abatement" means:
(a) the removal of one or more greenhouse gases from the atmosphere; or
(b) the avoidance of emissions of one or more greenhouse gases.
"carbon abatement contract" has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 .
"carbon capture and storage" means:
(a) the storage of a greenhouse gas substance in a part of a geological formation; or
(b) the injection of a greenhouse gas substance into a part of a geological formation for the purposes of such storage; or
(c) the capture, compression, processing, offloading, transportation or piped conveyance of a greenhouse gas substance, where the compression, processing, offloading, transportation or piped conveyance is for the purposes of such storage.
An expression used in this definition has the same meaning as in the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 . For this purpose, assume that each reference in the definition of greenhouse gas substance in section 7 of that Act to a prescribed greenhouse gas were a reference to a greenhouse gas (within the meaning of this Act).
"carbon dioxide equivalence" , of an amount of greenhouse gas, means the amount of the gas multiplied by a value specified in the regulations in relation to that kind of greenhouse gas.
"Chapter 5 body corporate" has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001 .
"civil penalty provision" has the meaning given by section 29.
"Commonwealth Registry account" has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 .
"constitutional corporation" means a corporation to which paragraph 51(xx) of the constitution applies.
"consumption" , of energy, has the meaning given by section 10.
"controlling corporation" means a constitutional corporation that does not have a holding company incorporated in Australia.
"court" means:
(a) the Federal Court of Australia; or
(b) the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2).
"covered emissions" has the meaning given by section 22XI.
"designated" financial year means:
(a) the financial year beginning on 1 July 2012; or
(b) a later financial year.
"designated generation facility" means a facility that is:
(a) attributable to the industry sector mentioned in item 54 of Schedule 2 to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Regulations 2008 (which deals with electricity generation); and
(b) not a vertically integrated production process (within the meaning of those regulations).
"designated large facility" has the meaning given by section 22XJ.
"Doha Amendment" means the amendments to the Kyoto Protocol that:
(a) were adopted by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, in Decision 1/CMP.8; and
(b) are set out in Annex I to that Decision.
Note 1: The Doha Amendment was adopted in Doha, Qatar, in December 2012.
Note 2: The Doha Amendment could in 2014 be viewed on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change website (http://www.unfccc.int).
"electronic notice transmitted to the Regulator" has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 .
"eligible offsets project" has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 .
"emission" of greenhouse gas means:
(a) a scope 1 emission of greenhouse gas; or
(b) a scope 2 emission of greenhouse gas.
"energy" , includes fuel, or any other energy commodity, of a kind specified in the regulations.
"engage in conduct" means:
(a) do an act; or
(b) omit to perform an act.
"ERF audit" means:
(a) an audit under section 214 or 215 of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 ; or
(b) an audit carried out for the purposes of preparing an audit report prescribed for the purposes of any of the following provisions of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 :
(i) paragraph 13(1)(e);
(ii) paragraph 13(1)(ea);
(iii) paragraph 13(1)(eb);
(iv) paragraph 23(1)(d);
(v) paragraph 76(4)(c);
(vi) paragraph 76(4)(ca);
(vii) paragraph 76(4)(cb).
"ERF audit report" means:
(a) an audit report under section 214 or 215 of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 ; or
(b) an audit report prescribed for the purposes of any of the following provisions of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011 :
(i) paragraph 13(1)(e);
(ii) paragraph 13(1)(ea);
(iii) paragraph 13(1)(eb);
(iv) paragraph 23(1)(d);
(v) paragraph 76(4)(c);
(vi) paragraph 76(4)(ca);
(vii) paragraph 76(4)(cb).
"excess emissions situation" has the meaning given by section 22XE.
"executive officer" of a body corporate means:
(a) a director of the body corporate; or
(b) the chief executive officer (however described) of the body corporate; or
(c) the chief financial officer (however described) of the body corporate; or
(d) the secretary of the body corporate.
"facility" has the meaning given by section 9.
"financial control" has the meaning given by section 22R.
"financial year" , when used in the safeguard provisions, means a financial year that began on or after the safeguard commencement day.
"foreign country" includes a region where:
(a) the region is a colony, territory or protectorate of a foreign country; or
(b) the region is part of a foreign country; or
(c) the region is under the protection of a foreign country; or
(d) a foreign country exercises jurisdiction or control over the region; or
(e) a foreign country is responsible for the region's international relations.
"foreign person" means any of the following:
(a) an individual who is not ordinarily resident in Australia;
(b) a body corporate that:
(i) is incorporated outside Australia; or
(ii) is an authority of a foreign country;
(c) a corporation sole that:
(i) is incorporated outside Australia; or
(ii) is an authority of a foreign country;
(d) a body politic of a foreign country;
(e) a trust, where the trustee, or a majority of the trustees, are covered by any or all of the above paragraphs.
"Greater Sunrise special regime area" has the same meaning as in the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 .
"greenhouse and energy audit" means an audit under any of sections 73 to 74C.
"greenhouse and energy information" means information reported to the Regulator under this Act or the safeguard rules, or information obtained by a person whilst performing duties under this Act, the regulations or the safeguard rules.
"greenhouse gas" has the meaning given by section 7A.
"greenhouse gas project" means an activity or series of activities:
(a) designed to remove or reduce the emission of greenhouse gases; and
(b) which meet the requirements specified in the regulations.
"group" has the meaning given by section 8.
"group entity" means a corporation that is a member of a controlling corporation's group.
"holding company" , in relation to a body corporate, is a body corporate of which the first body corporate is a subsidiary .
"industry sector" has the meaning given by the regulations.
"insolvent under administration" has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001 .
"international agreement" means an agreement whose parties are:
(a) Australia and a foreign country; or
(b) Australia and 2 or more foreign countries.
"issue" , in relation to a safeguard mechanism credit unit, means issue under section 22XNA.
"joint venture" means an unincorporated enterprise carried on by 2 or more persons in common otherwise than in partnership.
"Kyoto Protocol" means the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change done at Kyoto on 11 December 1997, as amended and in force for Australia from time to time.
Note: The Kyoto Protocol is in Australian Treaty Series 2008 No. 2 ([2008] ATS 2) and could in 2014 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).
"local governing body" means a local governing body established by or under a law of a State or Territory.
"member" , in relation to a group, has the meaning given by subsection 8(2).
"monitoring period" has the meaning given by section 22XG.
"natural gas" has the meaning given by the regulations.
"net emissions number" has the meaning given by section 22XK.
"net safeguard emissions" , for a financial year, means the total amount, in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence, of net covered emissions from the operation, during the financial year, of all designated large facilities for the financial year.
"non-group entity" means a person who is not a member of a controlling corporation's group.
"official of the Regulator" has the same meaning as in the Clean Energy Regulator Act 2011 .
"offsets" , of greenhouse gas emissions, has the meaning given by section 10.
"operation" , in relation to a facility, includes the subsistence of the facility.
"operational control" has the meaning given by section 11, 11A, 11B or 11C.
"Paris Agreement" means the Paris Agreement, done at Paris on 12 December 2015, as amended and in force for Australia from time to time.
Note: The Agreement is in Australian Treaty Series 2016 No. 24 ([2016] ATS 24) and could in 2022 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).
"past 5-year rolling average safeguard emissions" , for a financial year (the current financial year ), means the amount, in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence, that is one fifth of the total amount of safeguard emissions for the period of 5 financial years that ended:
(a) if the current financial year ends before 1 July 2027--3 years before the start of the current financial year; or
(b) otherwise--2 years before the start of the current financial year.
"person" means any of the following:
(a) an individual;
(b) a body corporate;
(c) a trust;
(d) a corporation sole;
(e) a body politic;
(f) a local governing body.
"prescribed carbon unit" has the meaning given by section 22XM.
"production" , of energy, has the meaning given by section 10.
"reduction" , of greenhouse gas emissions, has the meaning given by section 10.
"Register" means the National Greenhouse and Energy Register maintained under section 16.
"registered corporation" means a corporation that is registered under this Act.
"registered greenhouse and energy auditor" means an individual who is registered in the register of greenhouse and energy auditors kept under section 75A.
"registered holder" , in relation to a prescribed carbon unit or a relinquishable unit, means the person in whose Registry account there is an entry for the unit.
"registered person" means a person registered under this Act.
"Registry" means the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units continued in existence under the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 .
"Registry account" has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011 .
"Regulator" means the Clean Energy Regulator.
"relinquishable unit" means an Australian carbon credit unit or a safeguard mechanism credit unit.
"removal" , of greenhouse gas, has the meaning given by section 10.
"reporting transfer certificate" means a certificate issued under section 22L.
"reporting transfer test" has the meaning given by section 22J.
"responsible emitter" has the meaning given by section 22XH.
"safeguard audit" means an audit carried out for the purposes of preparing an audit report prescribed by safeguard rules made for the purposes of paragraph 22XNA(4)(c) or subsection 22XQ(3).
"safeguard audit report" means an audit report prescribed by safeguard rules made for the purposes of paragraph 22XNA(4)(c) or subsection 22XQ(3).
"safeguard commencement day" means the day on which Part 3H commences.
"safeguard emissions" , for a financial year, means the total amount, in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence, of covered emissions from the operation, during the financial year, of all designated large facilities for the financial year.
"safeguard mechanism credit unit" means a unit issued under section 22XNA.
"safeguard outcome" has the meaning given by subsection 3(2).
"safeguard provisions" means the following provisions:
(a) subsection 3(2);
(b) section 15B;
(c) section 18AA;
(ca) paragraph 18B(3)(ba);
(d) Part 3G;
(e) Part 3H.
"safeguard rules" means rules made under section 22XS.
"scope 1 emission" of greenhouse gas has the meaning given by section 10.
"scope 2 emission" of greenhouse gas has the meaning given by section 10.
"Secretary" means the Secretary of the Department.
"subsidiary" has the meaning given by section 46 of the Corporations Act 2001 .
"surrender" , in relation to a prescribed carbon unit, means surrender under section 22XN.
"trust" means a person in the capacity of trustee or, as the case requires, a trust estate.
"trustee" has the same meaning as in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 .
"trust estate" has the same meaning as in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 .
"United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea" means the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, done at Montego Bay on 10 December 1982.
Note: The text of the Convention is set out in Australian Treaty Series 1994 No. 31 ([1994] ATS 31). In 2011, the text of an international agreement in the Australian Treaty Series was accessible through the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (www.austlii.edu.au).
"unsatisfactory compliance record" has the meaning given by section 11D.
"warrant" (except in paragraph 60(1)(h)) means a warrant issued under section 70.