The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979: A Critical Analysis

Running head: RESEARCH ESSAY
RESEARCH ESSAY
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1RESEARCH ESSAY
Introduction:
The planning system of Australia is at a critical as well as confusing. In 1979, the
planning system was complex, not consistent, over politicized, ad hoc, separated from the local
communities and without any strategy and planning- often resulting in inappropriate
environmental results. In order to combat with these problems, the need of a new and efficient
planning act is felt. Thus the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979(NSW) was
enacted to ensure the objectives of genuine public participation, transparency, accountability,
consistency in decision making and environmental assessment. Since 1979, all these objectives
remained buried under layers of various amendments ending up in substantial change. In the year
of 2010, the planning system was modernized and made up to date by making it more strategic
and consistent, but the end result was not satisfactory as it became more complex and much
politicized, not connected to local communities and resulting into very poor environmental
outputs. It is at the high time for an overhaul of the existing planning laws.
The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (NSW) (‘EPAA’) does not
provide the principles of sustainable development that are intended to be an overriding priority of
this act. Although, EPAA declares ecologically sustainable development (ESD) as one of its
aims but further clarification on the application of the concept was not supplied leaving it to the
jurisdiction and discretion of court (Smith and Nadebaum 2016). As revealed later, that the
courts have interpreted ESD to be one of the priorities of the act paving the way for it to be a
dominant priority in future. In this essay, the focus is mainly on the concept of sustainable
development and what weightage is given in the act. It would be later argued that though
sustainable development is not regarded as an overriding priority, it is an extensive and
overarching principle that flows most decisions under the Act.

2RESEARCH ESSAY
Discussion:
If the Australians want to embrace the ESD, they first need to understand the concept and
reality of sustainability. The most common cited definition of sustainable development comes
from the report of 1987 of the World Commission on Environment and the Development called
‘Our Common Future’ also known as the Brundtland Commission Report is that the
development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future
generations to meet their own needs (Dunphy 2000). Chief Justice Preston of the NSW Land and
Environment Court has defined sustainable development to comprise of three components
mainly which are economic development, protection of environment and social progress. This
showed that the concept of social development is being added to the definition of sustainable
development by the World Summit 2002.
In Australia, the various legislatures have tried to supply some guidance to decisions
makers to define sustainable development. As a result of this, the terminology ‘sustainable
development’ has been modified as the ‘ecologically sustainable development’ to put emphasis
on the environmental aspects. In the EPA Act, ESD is worked upon through the objective
provisions of the act.
Legislative objectives have always played a crucial role in defining the objective of the
Act and providing guidance for its implementation. The present aims of the EPA act are as
follows to encourage; firstly, the proper management, growth and conservation of natural as well
as artificial resources, that includes natural areas, agricultural land, forests, minerals, water,
cities, towns and villages for the purpose of developing the social and economic welfare of the
community and a better environment, secondly, the promotion and coordination of the orderly