Wild rivers legislation
Wild Rivers Act 2005
The Queensland Parliament passed the Wild River Act in October 2005 (Wild Rivers Act 2005). The purpose of this Act is to preserve the natural values of rivers that have not been significantly affected by development – that is, rivers that have all, or almost all, of their natural values intact.
The Wild Rivers Act does this by regulating new development within a declared wild river and its catchment area, and by regulating the taking of natural resources from the area. The Act establishes a framework that includes the declaration of wild river areas that may include a:
- high preservation area
- preservation area
- floodplain management area
- subartesian management area
The Wild Rivers and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2006
The Wild Rivers and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2006 was assented to on 7 December 2006. This Act amended the Wild Rivers Act 2005 (and a number of associated Acts) as well as other unrelated legislation.
These amendments ensure low-impact development can proceed in a declared wild river area, while retaining the original intent of the wild rivers policy. These development activities include low impact mining, transport and agricultural development, and development in urban areas.
The changes are outlined in the Summary of amendments (PDF)*.
Wild Rivers and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2007
The Wild Rivers and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2007 was assented to on 28 February 2007. This Act amended the Wild Rivers Act 2005 to declare the Settlement, Gregory, Morning Inlet, Staaten, Fraser, and Hinchinbrook Wild River areas.
The amendments also approved the Wild Rivers Code and provided a process to amend the code if required.
These and some other minor changes are outlined in the Summary of amendments (PDF)*.
Environmental Protection and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2008
The Environmental Protection and Other legislation Amendment Act 2008 was assented to on 21 May 2008. Amendments were made to Environmentally Relevant Activities (ERA) under the Environmental Protection Act 1994. Amendments were also made to the Wild Rivers Act 2005 to reflect these changes; however there are no substantive changes affecting how development applications are dealt with.
These and some other minor changes are outlined in the Summary of amendments (PDF)*.
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Last updated: 06 August 2010