Have You Considered How Climate Change Might Affect Your Development?

Key Point

• Proponents must ensure that their own assessment reports deal with climate change in a relevant and meaningful way, to arm the regulatory agencies with the information they need to discharge their statutory responsibilities.

While we are now accustomed to considering how our businesses and particular projects might contribute to climate change, a recent case reminds us to also consider how climate change might affect particular projects for the purposes of obtaining development approval for those projects.

In Walker v Minister for Planning [2007] NSWLEC 741, the NSW Land and Environment Court held that the approval authority (in this case, the Minister) must consider whether changed weather patterns as a result of climate change would lead to an increased flood risk (which the Court called "climate change flood risk") for a residential development project, where