Rolleston Coal Holdings Pty Ltd v Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation

The case of Rolleston Coal Holdings Pty Ltd v Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation involved a dispute regarding a draft amended environmental authority for a coal mining project in Queensland. The Land Court was tasked with determining whether to recommend approval of the application, despite objections raised by various parties. The objections centred on several areas, including inadequacies in the assessment process, ecological impacts, rehabilitation plans, greenhouse gas emissions, air and water quality, and social and economic consequences, among others.

The court needed to decide whether it should recommend the application for an amended environmental authority be approved, considering the objections and the agreement on conditions between the applicant and the statutory party. A significant issue was whether the court, as a public entity under the Human Rights Act 2019, had properly considered human rights, particularly in light of previous holdings that greenhouse gas emissions could limit the right to life. The court had to determine if the limitation on human rights in this instance was demonstrably justified.

After thorough consideration, the court concluded that the application should be approved on the conditions stated in the draft environmental authority. The court accepted that the limitations on human rights were justified in this context. The court also directed the Registrar to promptly provide a copy of the orders, reasons, and access to the Land Court e-trial site to the administering authority responsible for the Environmental Protection Act 1994.