New South Wales Consolidated Acts

WATER ACT 1912 - SECT 11

11 Notification of application for licence

(1) On application being made for a licence under section 10, the Ministerial Corporation shall cause a notice containing particulars of the application to be advertised in the Gazette and in such other manner as the Ministerial Corporation is satisfied is likely to bring the notice to the attention of members of the public in the district where the work is or is proposed to be situated.

(1A) Subsection (1) does not require the Ministerial Corporation to cause to be advertised a notice containing particulars of an application unless it is satisfied that the applicant occupies, or will obtain the right to occupy, the site of the work.

(2) Where, at the time the application is made, the work is, or is proposed to be, situated within a declared local area, any:

(a) local occupier, or

(b) statutory authority,

whose interests may be affected by the granting of the application may, within 28 days after the date of the publication of the later of the advertisements referred to in subsection (1), lodge with the Ministerial Corporation an objection thereto.

(2A) Where, at the time the application is made, the work is not, or is not proposed to be, situated within a declared local area, any person whose interests may be affected by the granting of the application may, within 28 days after the date of the publication of the later of the advertisements referred to in subsection (1), lodge with the Ministerial Corporation an objection thereto.

(2B) An objection referred to in subsection (2) or (2A) shall be in writing and shall specify the grounds of objection.

(2C) If, after the application is advertised:

(a) the applicant amends the application as advertised, and

(b) in the opinion of the Ministerial Corporation the changes warrant the advertising of the application as amended,

the Ministerial Corporation shall advertise the amended application in the manner referred to in subsection (1) and:

(c) the provisions of this section shall apply to the amended application as if it were a new application, and

(d) the application as originally made shall be deemed to be withdrawn.

(3)

(a) After the expiry of a period of twenty-eight days after the date of the publication of the later of such advertisements, the Ministerial Corporation shall decide whether the application should be granted or refused.

(b) Where the decision of the Ministerial Corporation is that the application should be granted the Ministerial Corporation shall give the applicant notice of the period, terms, limitations and conditions proposed to be applied to the licence.

(4) In any case where the decision of the Ministerial Corporation is that the application should be refused, the applicant shall be notified in writing of such decision and may, within ninety days from the date of such notification, appeal to the Land and Environment Court against such decision.
The appeal shall be made as prescribed by rules of court of the Land and Environment Court and be accompanied by a fee of ten dollars as security for the costs of the appeal. Notice of appeal in the prescribed form shall be given by the appellant to the Ministerial Corporation upon the lodging of the appeal in the Land and Environment Court.
Where the appeal is upheld the Land and Environment Court shall specify the period, terms, limitations and conditions (if any) to be applied to the licence.
The decision of the Land and Environment Court upon any such appeal shall be final.

(5) The Ministerial Corporation must apply to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal for an inquiry into:

(a) if the Ministerial Corporation decides that an application for a licence should be granted but an objection has been lodged under subsection (2) or (2A)--the desirability of granting the application for a licence, or

(b) if the applicant for a licence is dissatisfied with the decision of the Ministerial Corporation as to the period, terms, limitations or conditions proposed to be applied to the licence and has, within 28 days after notice has been given to the applicant in accordance with subsection (3), lodged with the Ministerial Corporation a written objection--the period, terms, limitations and conditions proposed to be applied to the licence.

(6) The application for the inquiry must be made within 28 days after the relevant objection is received by the Ministerial Corporation.

(6A) An inquiry by the Civil and Administrative Tribunal is to be:

(a) notified by the Ministerial Corporation in the Gazette and in such other manner as the Ministerial Corporation is satisfied is likely to bring the holding of the inquiry to the attention of members of the public in the district where the work is or is proposed to be situated, and

(b) by way of a hearing that is open to the public.

(6B) In addition to the Ministerial Corporation and the applicant, the Civil and Administrative Tribunal is to permit such other persons or bodies as it considers have interests that may be affected by any matter to which the inquiry relates to make submissions to the inquiry.

(6C) In determining the inquiry, the Civil and Administrative Tribunal is to:

(a) in the case of an inquiry into the desirability of granting the application for a licence--determine whether the licence should be granted and, if so, the period, terms, limitations and conditions to be applied to the licence, or

(b) in the case of an inquiry into the period, terms, limitations and conditions proposed to be applied to a licence--determine the period, terms, limitations and conditions to be applied to the licence.

(6D) The Civil and Administrative Tribunal must ensure that a written statement of reasons (setting out the matters referred to in section 62 (3) of the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 ) for its determination of an inquiry is:

(a) provided to both the Ministerial Corporation and the applicant for the licence even if they have not requested that statement under section 62 of that Act, and

(b) published on the website of the Tribunal.

(7) This section is subject to section 11A.

(8) Subsections (1)-(3) (a) do not apply to an application for a licence in respect of an existing work.