The Environmental Planning & Assessment Amendment Act
2017 (NSW) (Amending Act) will come into effect on 1
March 2018, introducing a range of significant amendments
to the Environmental Planning & Assessment Act 1979 (NSW) (EPA
Act). Many of the changes introduced by the Amending Act will take
effect immediately, while other provisions will commence in a
staged manner over the next two years.
In a series of articles over the coming weeks, we will summarise
the most significant amendments, starting with a look at the new
planning authorities and mandatory community participation
requirements as well as changes to the development assessment
process.
Preliminary matters
From 1 March 2018, the EPA Act will comprise 10 parts (replacing
the previous eight-part structure) and decimal numbering will also
be introduced. Additional overarching objects to the EPA Act have
also been inserted, namely the promotion of:
