Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (Removal of Places from the Commonwealth Heritage List) Instrument 2024 (No. 1)

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (Removal of Places from the Commonwealth Heritage List) Instrument 2024 (No. 1)

I, Tanya Plibersek, Minister for the Environment and Water, make the following instrument.

Dated 13.12.2024    

Tanya Plibersek

Minister for the Environment and Water

Contents

1  Name...................................................1

2  Commencement............................................1

3  Authority................................................1

4  Definitions...............................................1

5  Removal of places from the Commonwealth Heritage List...................1

Schedule 1—Statement of Reasons for the removal of places from the Commonwealth Heritage List under section 341L of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999              2

1  Name

  This instrument is the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (Removal of Places from the Commonwealth Heritage List) Instrument 2024 (No. 1).

2  Commencement

  This instrument commences on the day after it is registered.

3  Authority

  This instrument is made under subsection 341L(4) of the Act.

4  Definitions

Note: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in section 341C of the Act, including the following:

(a) Commonwealth Heritage List.

  In this instrument:

Act means the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

 5  Removal of places from the Commonwealth Heritage List

 (1) Each place mentioned in an item in the following table is removed from the Commonwealth Heritage List.

 (2) A statement of reasons is provided in Schedule 1 for the removal of each place mentioned in the table under subsection (1) from the Commonwealth Heritage List.

Schedule 1—Statement of Reasons for the removal of places from the Commonwealth Heritage List under section 341L of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

1.        I, Tanya Plibersek, Minister for the Environment and Water, provide this statement of reasons for the removal of the following places from the Commonwealth Heritage List under subsection 341L(4) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (the Act): the Naval Offices (Commonwealth Heritage place ID 105225), the Australian Maritime College (Commonwealth Heritage place ID 105663), the West Portal Cafeteria (Commonwealth Heritage place ID 105554) and the Malabar Headland (Commonwealth Heritage place ID 105605).

LEGISLATION

1.        Paragraph 341L(1)(a) of the Act provides that I must remove all or part of a place from the Commonwealth Heritage List as soon as practicable after I become aware that the place or part thereof is no longer in a Commonwealth area.

1.        Section 525 of the Act provides that a ‘Commonwealth area’, includes, among other things, land owned or leased by the Commonwealth or a Commonwealth agency.

1.        A place or part of a place can be removed from the Commonwealth Heritage List by an instrument including a statement of reasons for the removal (subsection 341L(4)).

BACKGROUND

1.        The Naval Offices was included in the Commonwealth Heritage List by Gazette Instrument on 15 July 2004.

1.        The West Portal Cafeteria was included in the Commonwealth Heritage List by Gazette Instrument on 17 December 2020.

1.        The Australian Maritime College was included in the Commonwealth Heritage List by Gazette Instrument on 15 July 2004.

1.        The Malabar Headland was included in the Commonwealth Heritage List by Gazette Instrument on 15 July 2004.

1.        At the time of inclusion in the Commonwealth Heritage List, each of the four places was in a Commonwealth area as defined by section 525 of the Act.

EVIDENCE AND MATERIAL BEFORE ME

1.    I considered advice from the Department of Finance’s letter dated 31 May 2011 which states that ownership of the Naval Offices was transferred to the Queensland Department of Public Works in 2011.

1.    I considered advice from the Department of Finance. The advice stated that the West Portal Cafeteria (Commonwealth Heritage place ID 105554) was leased to Campbell Resi Con Ave Pty Ltd in 2022 for a period of 99 years under a Crown lease managed by the ACT government.

1.    I considered the University of Tasmania’s request in April 2023 for the removal of the Australian Maritime College from the Commonwealth Heritage List. I noted the Australian Maritime College was integrated with the University of Tasmania in 2007 by the Maritime Legislation Amendment Act 2007. Under this Act all land owned by Australian Military College was vested in the University of Tasmania.

1.    In relation to the transfer of the Malabar Headland to the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, I considered the title searches for Lot 102 in DP 1162245 and Lots 303 and 304 in DP 1178568 and spatial data which demonstrates that the Lots transferred are the equivalent of the entire area of the Commonwealth Heritage Listed place.

FINDINGS ON MATERIAL QUESTIONS OF FACT

1.    Noting the above, I found that the places listed in paragraph 1 are no longer owned or leased by the Commonwealth or otherwise considered to be in a ‘Commonwealth area’ as defined by the Act.

1.    Accordingly, pursuant to paragraph 341L(1)(a) of the Act, I decided to remove the four places listed in paragraph 1 from the Commonwealth Heritage List.