RECLAMATION ACT.
Act No. 37, 1930.
An Act to make provision for the reclamation and improvement of submerged and low-lying lands and the carrying out of reclamation schemes; to constitute a Reclamation Trust and to define its powers, functions, and duties; to provide for the vesting in the trust of certain lands and for the disposal of lands by the trust; to make provision lor the borrowing of moneys by the trust and the guarantee of the repayment thereof out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund; to amend the Local Government Act, 1919, and certain other Acts; and for purposes connected therewith. [Assented to. 25th June, 1930.]
| lative Council and Legislative Assembly of New South | BE it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legis |
| Wales in Par l iament assembled, and by the au thor i ty of the same, as fol lows:— |
P R E L I M I N A R Y .
| 1. | (1) This Ac t may be cited as t he | " R e c l a m a t i o n |
Act , 1930," and shall commence upon a da te to be appoin ted by the Governor and notified by proc lamat ion publ ished in the Gazet te .
| (2 | This Act is divided into Par t s , as follows : — |
| P A R T | I . — P H E L T M I N A KY— ss. | 1-2. |
| P A R T | I I . — C O N S T I T U T I O N , OFFICERS, | & C . — s s . | 3 - 7 . |
| P A R T | I I I . — A D M I N I S T R A T I O N - — S S . | 8 - 1 3 . |
| P A R T | IV.—FINANCIAL— | SS. | 1 9 - 2 2 . |
| P A R T | V . — S U P P L E M E N T A L — SS. | 2 3 - 3 0 . |
2. ( 1 ) I n th is Ac t , unless t he con tex t or subject-
| m a t t e r | o therwise | indicates | or | r equ i res ,— |
| " Capi ta l va lue | " — |
| " U n i m p r o v e d | | capi tal | value " | of | l and means | t he | |
capi ta l s u m which the fee-simple of t h e land m i g h t be expec ted to realise if offered for sale on such reasonable t e rms and condi t ions as a bona-fide seller would require , and inc lud ing t h e va lue a t t r i bu tab le to any work of t h e
| t rus t , | b u t | a s suming | t h a t | a n y | o ther | improve |
m e n t the reon or apper ta in ing the re to , a n ^ made or acquired by t h e owner or h is pre decessor in t i t le had not been made :
Provided t h a t the re shall be a reasonable deduct ion for profitable expend i tu re by the owner or occupier on visible and effective! improvement s (if any) which , a l t hough no t u p o n the land, have been cons t ruc ted for i ts dra inage , for its protect ion from inunda t ion , or otherwise for its more beneficial use .
| " I m p r o v e d | capi la l | v a l u e " | of | land | shal l | be | t h e |
capi tal s u m which t h e fee-simple of t he l and m i g h t be expected to realise if offered for sale on such reasonable t e rms and condi t ions as a bona-fide seller would require .
| " C o u n c i l " | means | counci l | of | a | munic ipa l i ty | or |
shire wi th in which land comprised in a pro
posal for rec lamat ion is situated."
| " C r o w n | l a n d s " | m e a n s lands vested | in | H i s | Majesty |
| and not p e r m a n e n t l y dedicated to any pub l i c |
purpose or g ran ted or lawfully con t rac ted to be g ran ted in fee-simple unde r t he Crown L a n d s Ac t s .
| " O w n e r , " in re la t ion | to land , inc ludes every | person |
| who jo in t ly or | severally, w h e t h e r | a t law or | in |
| equ i ty ,— |
| (a) | is entitled to the land for any estate of freehold in possession ; or |
| (b) is a person to w h o m t h e Crown | h a s |
| lawful ly | con t rac ted to g ran t | t h e | fee- |
| s imple u n d e r | t h e | Crown | L a n d s A c t ; | or |
(c)
| (c) | is entitled to receive, or is in receipt of, or if t he land were let to a t enan t wou ld be ent i t led to receive, t h e ren t s a n d profits thereof, whe the r as beneficial owner , t rus tee , mor tgagee in possession, |
| |
and includes every person w ho by v i r tue of
th is A c t is deemed to be t he owner .
The t rus tees for the t ime be ing of lands p e r m a n e n t l y dedicated to a pub l i c purpose shal l , for t he purposes of th i s Ac t , be deemed to be the owner of such lands .
" Prescr ibed " means prescribed by th is A c t or by
| regula t ions | m a d e | thereunder . |
| " R a t a b l e | pe r son , " | " p e r s o n | r a t a b l e , " | a n d | s imilar |
| expressions include t h e Crown and m e a n | the |
owner of l and inc luded in a rec lamat ion zone.
| " R e c l a m a t i o n " | means | t he | rec lamat ion | of | l and |
beyond or below h i g h - w a t e r m a r k in any t idal wa te r s and land adjoining there to inc luded in a rec lamat ion area or t he rec lamat ion of t he bed of a bay , r iver , wate rcourse , swamp, or in land water , t idal or non- t ida l , and l and adjoining
| the re to included | in a . rec lamat ion | area . |
| " Rec l ama t ion | a r e a " | m e a n s | t h e | land | beyond | or |
| below h igh -wa te r | m a r k | in a n y | t idal water , or |
| t h e bed | of | a bay, r iver, watercourse , s w a m p , |
| or in land water , t ida l or non- t ida l , and | l and |
| adjo in ing | the re to proposed to be | rec la imed |
unde r a rec lamat ion scheme.
| " R e c l a m a t i o n scheme " or " scheme " means a recla ma t ion scheme unde r th i s Act , approved by t h e Governor , or a n y a m e n d m e n t of such scheme also approved by the Governor . |
" Rec lama t ion zone " or " zone " means and inc ludes the lands t h e capi ta l va lue of which a r e deemed, u n d e r this Act, to be depreciated or enhanced by reason of t he land to be reclaimed h a v i n g been reclaimed.
| " S t a t u t o r y | b e d y " | includes t he Met ropo l i t an | W a t e r , |
| Sewerage , and | Dra inage | Board, | t he | H u n t e r |
| Dis t r ic t W a t e r Supp lv | a n d | Sewerage | Board , |
t h e
t he Sydney H a r b o u r T rus t Commissioners, the Board of F i r e Commissioners of N e w South Wales , t he Ra i lway Commissioners for N e w
| South | Wales , | t he | Met ropol i t an | M e a t | I n d u s t r y |
| Board , a n d any pub l i c body proclaimed | unde r |
| the Local | Gove rnmen t Ac t , 1919 as a s t a tu to ry |
body represent ing t h e Crown.
| " T r u s t " | means t he Rec lamat ion Trus t | established |
| (2) N o t h i n g | in th i s | A c t | shall be | const rued ,to |
ail'ect or restr ict t he powers for the rec lamat ion of
laud conta ined in any o ther Ac t .
| T H E | TRUST —CONSTITUTION, | O F F I C E R S , | &C. |
(1) For t he purpose of ca r ry ing this A c t into
execut ion the re shall be a Rec lamat ion Trus t consist ing
of the following members , n a m e l y :—
3 .
| (a) | the holder for the time being of the office of Surveyor -Genera l of N e w South Wales who shall be cha i rman of the t rus t ; |
| (b) the p e r m a n e n t head | for t he t ime being of the |
| D e p a r t m e n t | of | Pub l i c | W o r k s | ; |
| (c) | the holder for the time being of the office of |
| Pres iden t | of the Sydney | H a r b o u r Trus t | Com | |
| |
(2) The t rus t shall be charged with the adminis
| t ra t ion | of | th is Ac t and shal l have t he powers and |
| au thor i t ies and exercise t he dut ies and funct ions | vested |
| in or imposed upon the t ru s t by or unde r this Ac t . |
( I ) The t ru s t shall be a body corporate , wi th per pe tua l succession and a common seal, and may sue and be sued in its corporate n a m e ; and shall , for t he purposes and subjec t to the provisions of th is Act , he capable of purchas ing , holding, g ran t ing , demising, disposing of, or otherwise deal ing wi th real and personal p roper ty , and of doing and suffering all such o the r acts and th ings as bodies corporate may by law do and suffer.
4 .
The
| T h e corporate name of the t rust shal l be " T h e Reclamation. Trus t of New South | W a l e s . " |
(2) A t any mee t ing of the t rus t a t which all th ree
members are present , t he decision of t he major i ty of
| t he m e m b e r s shal l be the decision of the | t ru s t . |
(3) Any two members of the t r u s t shal l be a
quo rum, and shall have all t he powers and au thor i t ies by
th is Ac t conferred upon the t ru s t
(4) If a t any mee t ing of the t rus t a t which two member s only arc present such members differ in opinion upon any mat te r , the de terminat ion of such m a t t e r shal l be postponed un t i l all the members arc present .
(5) No act or proceeding of the t r u s t shall be inval idated or prejudiced by reason only of the fact t h a t a t the t ime when such ac t or proceeding was t a k e n , done , or commenced, there was a vacancy in t he office of any one member of the t ius
| (G) N o action or suit | shal l be b r o u g h t or ma in |
tained aga ins t a n y person who is, or at a n y t ime has been, a m e m b e r of the t r u s t for a n y t h i n g done or omi t ted by h im pursuan t to the dut ies imposed upon h im by th is Act .
Officers.
(1) The staff of the t rus t shall be appointed u n d e r and be subject to the provisions of the Pub l i c Service
5 .
(2) The t rus t may appoin t , employ , and dismiss
such casual employees as it deems necessary for t h e
purposes of th i s Act. and may fix wages and condit ions
| wi th the provisions of o ther Ac t s . | of e m p l o y m e n t where these are not fixed in accordance | 6. |
(1) F o r the purpose of ca r ry ing out t he powers , au thor i t ies , dut ies , and functions vested in or imposed upon the t ru s t by this Act , the t rus t , wi th t he approval of t h e Min i s te r of t he d e p a r t m e n t concerned, on such t e rms as may be ar ranged, may m a k e use of the services of any of the officers, employees, or p lan t of any depar t m e n t of the Publ ic Service.
| (2) The t rus t , for the l ike purpose , wi th | t he |
appreval of any s t a tu to ry body or counci l , on such t e rms as m a y be ar ranged, may m a k e use of t he services of any of the officers, employees, or p l an t of such s t a tu to ry
7 . The t r u s t may appor t ion the salaries and expenses
| of t he t r u s t a n d | its | staff, and | any o the r | admin is t ra t ive |
expenses of any n a t u r e , in an equi tab le manner be tween and charge the a m o u n t s so apport ioned to the respect ive rec lamat ion schemes or to councils concerned where a rec lamat ion proposal does not become a rec lamat ion scheme.
P A R T I .
A DMINISTRATION
| 8 . | (1) A n y council may m a k e a recommendat ion | to |
| t h e t rus t for the invest igat ion of a proposal for | t be |
| rec lamat ion of | land . |
The recommendat ion shall be accompanied by a repor t of the council sugges t ing appropr ia te boundar ies of a reclamation zone together .with a plan of t he zone
(2) A counci l which has lCcoinmendeJ the inves t iga t ion of a proposal may , a t any t ime before the da te of t h e proclamat ion notifying the au thor i sa t ion and confirmation by the Governor of t he scheme comprised in such proposal, wi thdraw the recommendat ion by
The not ice shall be given in tbe m a n n e r prescribed.
AVhere a council has wi thdrawn a r ecommenda t ion
| u n d e r | th i s | subsect ion— |
| (a) | no further steps shall be taken under this A c t in relat ion to the proposal recommended , unless a fur ther recommendat ion in respect thereof is made under subsection one of th i s |
| |
| (b) | the trust may recover from the council as a debt in any cour t of compe ten t jur i sd ic t ion t h e costs and expenses incurred by the t rus t in connect ion wi th the proposal. |
9 . The t ru s t—
| (a) | shall investigate the proposal and determine the proper me thod of effecting t h e rec lama- tion ; | | (b) | shall compile a detailed estimate of the cost involved in effecting the reclamat ion ; | |
(c)
| (c) shal l define | t h e boundar ies of the r ec l amat ion |
zone so as to inc lude there in t he proper t ies , t h e values of which arc deemed by t h e t ru s t to be depreciated or enhanced by the rec lamat ion ;
| (d) | shall assess the amount by which the improved capi ta l va lue of each proper ty wi th in t h e rec lamat ion zone is deemed to be depreciated, or enhanced by the reclamat ion. |
| I n | assessing the | a m o u n t s | for t h e | purposes |
of th i s pa ragraph regard shall be had to t h e posit ion of every such proper ty and t h e degree of depreciat ion or enhancemen t of i ts improved capi ta l va lue which the rec lama tion may reasonably be expected to produce .
| (e) | shal l p repare a rec lamat ion | p lan . |
Such plan shall show the boundar ies of t h e proposed rec lamat ion zone and rec lamat ion area and shal l indica te thereon the lands to be set a p a r t for disposal and those to be reserved for pa rks or pub l i c purposes.
| 1 0 . | (1) | The t ru s t shall , as soon as pract icable , cause |
to be deposited with t he counc i l—
| (a) | t h e reclamat ion | p l a n ; |
| (b) a | schedule which shall specify t h e | a m o u n t s |
to be paid to the owners of lands deemed to be
| (c) | an assessment roll, which shall specify the a m o u n t assessed as t h e enhancemen t of t he improved capi ta l value of each parcel of land |
| wi th in t h e reclamat ion | zone. | |
(2) The t rus t shall cause notices in t he p re
| scribed form to be publ ished by adver t i sement in | t h e |
Gaze t te and in a local newspaper c i rcu la t ing in t h e rec lamat ion zone, and to be given in t he m a n n e r pre scribed to all persons appea r ing by the books of t he council to be (a) the owners of lands in t he schedule , and (b) t he persons to be ra ted in respect of lands on the assessment rol l .
The notices shall s ta te—
| (i) t h a t t h e boundar ies of | t h e | rec lamat ion | area |
a n d rec lamat ion zone have been provisionally
| defined | by | t h e | t r u s t ; |
( i i )
| (ii) t h a t | t h e rec lamat ion | p lan , t h e | schedule | of |
| p a y m e n t s to he made , and the | assessment roll |
| m a y | be inspected a t t he office of t he counc i l ; |
| (iii) t h a t | objections m a y be lodged wi th t h e council as in the m a n n e r and form | prescribed. |
| 1 1 . | On expi ra t ion of | t h e prescr ibed | period | the |
| counci l shall forward | to t h e | t r u s t — |
| (a) | a certificate in the prescribed form that the reclamat ion plan, t he schedule , and the assess m e n t roll have been available for inspection as provided by section ten ; end |
| (b) | the objections received there to (if a n y ) . |
1 2 . The t rus t shall notify each objector of t h e t ime
a n d place a t which he, e i ther personal ly or by agent au thor ised in wr i t ing , m a y appear before t he t ru s t and be heard in suppor t of his objection.
The t ru s t may vary the rec lamat ion plan, schedule, a n d / o r assessment roll, and shal l notify the council and each respective owner of any such variat ion.
| A n y counci l or person aggrieved by any determinat ion of the t r u s t r e la t ing to a n y objection | or var ia t ion of | t he |
| plan, | schedule , a n d / o r | assessment | roll | m a y | appeal |
| theref rom | to t he L a n d and Valua t ion | Cour t in | t h e |
| m a n n e r | prescribed | by | rules | of | t h a t | cour t , whose |
decision shall be final.
| 1 3 . | The a m o u n t e s t ima ted | in | pu r suance | of | section |
n ine as t he cost involved in effecting t he reclamat ion reduced by t h e a m o u n t , if any, t he t r u s t m a y con
| t r ibu te , shal l become due and payable by the counci l | to |
t h e t r u s t on t e rms and condit ions to be agreed upon be tween the council and the t rus t , and approved by the Governor .
| 1 4 . | (1) | The council shall de t e rmine— |
| (a) | t he proport ion, if any, of the a m o u n t so payable which shall be paid out of i ts Genera l L u n d ; and. |
| (b) | the proportion which shall be raised by a rec lamat ion ra te payab le to t h e council b y each ra tab le person in respect of his land in t he rec lamat ion zone ; b u t the propor t ion unde r |
| th i s | pa r ag raph | shal l | not | exceed | the | to ta l | |
| a m o u n t | of t h e enhanced values of all | ra tab le | |
| lands in t h e rec lamat ion | zone. | |
( 2 )
| ( 2 ) | The a m o u n t payab le by each | ra tab le person |
shal l be in t he ratio to t he to ta l s u m to be raised by t h e rec lamat ion r a t e t h a t t h e enhanced va lue of t he land of such r a t ab l e person bears to the total enhanced va lues of all ra tab le lands in t he rec lamat ion zone.
| The counci l shal l fo r thwi th | m a k e | a rec lamat ion | ra te , |
and shall levy such ra t e in each year on t h e improved or un improved capi tal va lue of all propert ies in t h e reclamat ion zone un t i l t he agg rega t e a m o u n t payable by al l such ra tab le persons has been paid. B u t each ra tab le person shal l only be l iable to pay such ra te un t i l t h e a m o u n t payab le in respect of his p roper ty has been paid.
The procedure prescribed by or u n d e r t he Local Gove rnmen t Act , 1919, wi th respect to t h e m a k i n g and levying of a local ra te , a n d the proceedings for t h e recovery of a n y such ra te , and the provisions of such A c t wi th respect to t he cha rge of such ra te on t h e land on which i t is levied shall apply , m u t a t i s mu tand i s , to and in respect of a rec lamat ion r a t e made and levied
| (3) | No twi th s t and ing any provision of the Loca l |
| G o v e r n m e n t | Act , | 1919, | t he | council | m a y | apply | t h e |
Genera l F u n d of its area towards p a y m e n t of a n y deficiency between the amoun t s paid or to be paid in pu r suance of t he counci l ' s de te rmina t ion u n d e r subsec t ion one of th is section and the a m o u n t due and payable by t h e counci l under section th i r t een of th i s Act , or m a y levy a local or special ra te in accordance wi th t he provi
| sions of t h a t A c t for the p a y m e n t of such | deficiency. |
| 1 5 . | The t ru s t | shall | submi t | t he | rec lamat ion p lan , | t h e |
| schedule , and | the | assessment roll , t oge the r w i t h | t h e |
| de te rmina t ions of t he | counci l unde r section four teen, | to |
t he Minis te r w i th a r ecommenda t ion as to whe the r t h e rec lamat ion shall be proceeded wi th , and , if so, on w h a t
| t e rms and | condit ions. |
| T h e Governor m a y author ise t h e scheme and | confirm |
t h e p l an and schedule and assessment roll and t h e de te rmina t ions of t he counci l wi th or wi thou t var ia t ions , a n d shal l by proc lamat ion publ ished in t h e Gaze t te notify such au thor iza t ion and confirmation a n d fix t h e date from which the scheme and de te rmina t ions shal l operate .
1 6 ,
| 1 6 . | (1) The t r u s t shall cause a copy of t h e | procla |
mat ion and of the plan, schedule, and assessment rolls, a n d the de te rmina t ions of the council , as confirmed by the Governor, to be deposited in the office of t he Reg i s t ra r -Genera l , who shall regis ter same in the
| m a n n e r prescribed by regula t ions made under | t he | Con |
| veyanc ing Act , 1919. |