Key reforms to Queensland's mining lease objections process

The reforms will also apply to major amendment applications for EAs where those amendments involve ineligible environmentally relevant activities.  In this case, the amended assessment and decision-making process described below will apply.  

The Bill has been referred to the Primary Industries and Resources Committee for consideration. Public submissions are invited by the Committee, and are open to any interested party until 12 October 2026.  A public briefing is scheduled for 14 October 2026 and a public hearing for 28 October 2026.  As at the date of writing, the Committee's report on the Bill is due to be provided by 6 November 2026.

This article analyses the substantive reforms against the current legislation and identifies the practical consequences for mining sector participants and stakeholders.  This article does not deal with the very specific provisions of the Bill relating to the Byerwen mining leases. 

Removal of duplication in environmental assessments

Under the current MRA, before making a decision to approve or recommend approval of a mining lease (ML), the Minister and the Land Court on an objections hearing must consider whether there will be any adverse environmental impacts. Historically, the consideration of environmental impacts as part of the grant of an ML was considered by project proponents as unnecessarily duplicative, noting that the assessment of environmental impacts sits at the heart of the assessment of an EA application.

The Bill now provides a revised set of Ministerial decision-making criteria which retain most of the existing criteria, but omits the environmental impact criterion. The practical effect is that environmental matters will be dealt with solely through the EA assessment process with the MLA process focussed on land-use, operational and public interest criteria.

This delineation also largely extends to the Land Court's consideration of an MLA.

Grounds of objection to an MLA must be limited to the criteria outlined in section 271(1). Accordingly, environmental grounds are no longer available for ML objections under the MRA and must instead be raised through objections process under the EP Act.

Amalgamation of EA and PRCP processes

The Bill proposes to amalgamate the decision making for a PRCP Schedule and an EA under the EP Act into a single integrated process. Under the proposed reform, the Department must issue both the draft EA and a draft PRCP schedule together. The objection and public submission processes will then apply to both draft documents concurrently, under a single timeline tied to the last objection day. Also when a referral to the Land Court is made, the Court's hearing and recommendation will address the draft EA and draft PRCP schedule together, and the Department's decision will be a single decision on the site-specific application as a whole. On approval, both documents are issued together within the one timeframe.

Restrictions on objection eligibility

No right to object to standard and variation EA applications

Under the current EP Act, the public notification, submission and objection processes apply to all EA applications associated with an MLA, including standard and variation EA applications, not just site specific applications. The Bill seeks to remove this process entirely for standard and variation EA applications.

Therefore, under the reforms, public notification and objection processes for mining-related EA applications will be available only for site-specific applications and major amendment applications equivalent to site-specific applications.

Who may object?

One of the most consequential reforms in the Bill is the restriction of objection rights under the MRA and the EP Act to 'eligible entities'. Under both pieces of legislation currently in force, any entity is entitled to lodge an objection to an MLA or EA application and the grounds of any such objection are not restricted.

Under the amendments proposed, only an eligible entity may lodge an objection, which is limited to:

• an affected person, which includes an owner of the subject land, an owner of land necessary for access to the subject land, an owner of adjoining land, the relevant local government, and an entity that provides infrastructure wholly or partially on the subject land;

• an occupier of land wholly or partly within the area of the proposed ML; and

• an owner or occupier of land wholly or partly within the 125km outside the boundary of the proposed ML.

Grounds of objections are narrowed

Under the current framework, objections to MLAs and EA applications may be made on any ground. The Bill limits objections grounds to:

• for MLAs, the criteria under section 271(1) of the MRA; and

• for EA applications, the draft EA, the draft PRCP schedule, or the decision criteria under the EP Act.

The expressed intent of these changes is to ensure that objections are focused on matters relevant to the statutory decision-maker, and that (for EA applications) objectors will be guided to specify specific conditions or requirements of the draft that concern them.

For non-eligible entities or those who wish to make an objection on broader grounds, the reforms introduce an ability for any person to make a submission in relation to a site-specific EA application at anytime during the public notification period. Submissions may be made on any ground. The Department may, but is not required to, consider each submission when making its decision to approve or refuse the EA application. Submissions cannot be referred to the Land Court in the same way as properly-made objections.

There is no corresponding ability to make a submission under the MRA in relation to an MLA.

Replacement of automatic Land Court referral with discretionary power to refer

Under the current framework, whenever a properly made objection is lodged against an MLA, the application and all properly made objections must be referred to the Land Court for hearing. This referral is automatic and mandatory. Similarly, under the current EP Act, where an objection notice is given in relation to an EA application relating to an MLA, the Department must refer the application to the Land Court for an objections decision hearing. The Land Court then conducts a full hearing, receives evidence, and makes a recommendation to the Minister (for MLAs) or the Department (for EA applications).

The Bill changes this process by replacing the automatic referral process with a discretionary referral power, where the Minister may make a referral to the Land Court about an MRA to conduct a hearing on either the application generally or a specific matter stated by the Minister.

A parallel discretionary power is proposed to be introduced for site-specific EA applications.

Coordinated public notification

Under the current framework, separate public notification processes apply under the MRA and the EP Act, even though they are undertaken simultaneously. The Bill provides for a combined notification process through the mining lease notice (MLN) issued under the MRA. To accommodate combined notification, the MLN will not be able to be issued until the applicant has obtained either a draft EA and draft PRCP schedule (for site-specific applications) or an EA (for standard and variation applications) or an amended EA (for amendment applications). The MLN must include information about where documents showing the ML boundary and the 125km eligibility zone can be inspected or accessed.

This coordinated public notification also applies to EA amendment applications. However, in the case of an EA amendment application, which does not include adding a new ML, the Department will give the equivalent of a MLN and otherwise, the usual ML notifications and objections process will apply.

Impact on coordinated projects under the State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971 (State Development Act)

The Bill includes some targeted amendments for mining projects which are declared to be coordinated projects under the State Development Act, so that the public notification stage for an EA application does not apply where either a draft environmental impact statement or a draft impact assessment report under the State Development Act has already been publicly notified. This only applies if the environmental risks and the way it will be carried out have not changed or the Department is satisfied that any change would not be likely to attract a submission objecting to the matter the subject of the change.

Transitional provisions

The transitional provisions are critical to understanding the impact of the reforms on existing MLA and EA applications. The treatment of these applications depends on how far they have progressed as at the time the Bill is enacted and the amending provisions commence.

Proponents with existing applications, particularly where they are yet to commence a formal Land Court hearing, should seek advice on how the transitional provisions apply to their specific circumstances, acknowledging that it remains unclear when these amendments will commence.

Generally, applications that have not yet been referred to the Land Court, or where a referral has been made but the hearing has not commenced and no substantive procedural orders or directions (other than fixing a hearing date) have been made, will transition to the new amended framework, with any existing Land Court referral taken to have never been made and existing objections carried across to the equivalent new provisions. Where a Land Court hearing has already commenced, or substantive procedural orders or directions have been made, the pre-amended framework will continue to govern the hearing and the decision, although the resulting decision will be taken to be a decision made under the amended provisions. Similarly, where the Land Court has already made a recommendation, the Minister or Department must decide the application under the pre-amended framework, with the decision again treated as one made under the new framework. Different rules also apply depending on whether the application is a site-specific EA application or a standard or variation EA application.

Conclusion

The Bill represents a deliberate and comprehensive effort to streamline the approvals processes for MLAs and their associated EAs in Queensland. The Bill has been referred to the Primary Industries and Resources Committee. We will continue to monitor its progress and any amendments made during the Committee process.