State government responsibilities
Under the Australian Constitution, state governments have long-standing responsibility for resource management. In the past three decades the states have developed legislation and managerial instruments in resource use, environmental management, conservation, and pollution control. Today all the states have a range of legislation and agencies that regulate uses of the coastal zone. An example of multi-agency involvement in coastal resource management is illustrated in Figure 4.4.
All states and the Northern Territory have legislation that specifically addresses coastal management, and most have small agencies that have the lead responsibility for the coast. Table 4.2 attempts to identify the current major state coastal policies and lead agencies and the range of legislation that is sig-
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South Australia |
Tasmania |
Victoria |
West Australia |
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Supporting instruments or strategies |
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Guidelines by State Coastal Advisory Committee |
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Other closely relevant legislation |
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National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 Historic Shipwrecks Act 1989 Aboriginal Heritage Act 1993 Environment Protection Act 1993 Harbours and Navigation Act 1993 Heritage Act 1993 Water Resources Act 1997 Local Government Act 1999 |
Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993 Local Government Act 1993 State Policies and Projects Act 1993 Historic Cultural Heritage Act 1995 Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act |
NRE: Land Act 1958 Environment Protection Act 1970 Parks Victoria: National Parks Act, 1975 Committees of Management: Crown Land (Reserves) Act, 1978 Environment Effects Act 1978 Planning and Environment Act 1987 Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 Fisheries Act 1995 Local Government Act 1989 |
Local Govemment Act 1960 Environment Protection Act 1987 |
nificant in coastal management. The legislation illustrates something of the complexity of looking after the coast, involving the overlapping fields of resource management, conservation and pollution control.
Recently, four states have promulgated a 'whole of government' coastal policy – Tasmania (1996), New South Wales (1997), Victoria (1997) and Queensland (2001). South Australia and Western Australia are in the process of developing state coastal policies. These mark important steps towards the integration of coastal management in Australia.
