Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (NSW)

The Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (BC Act) is a state-based act of parliament in New South Wales (NSW).^[1] Its long title is An Act relating to the conservation of biodiversity; and to repeal the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, the Nature Conservation Trust Act 2001 and the animal and plant provisions of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974.^[2] It supersedes the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, and commenced on 25 August 2017.^[3][4]

Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016
Parliament of New South Wales
Long title An Act relating to the conservation of biodiversity; and to repeal the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, the Nature Conservation Trust Act 2001 and the animal and plant provisions of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974.
Passed by	Legislative Council
Passed	16 November 2016
Passed by	Legislative Assembly
Passed	17 November 2016
Royal assent	23 November 2016
Commenced	23 November 2016
Legislative history
First chamber: Legislative Council
Bill title	Biodiversity Conservation Bill
Introduced by	Niall Blair
First reading	9 November 2016
Second reading	15 November 2016
Third reading	16 November 2016
Second chamber: Legislative Assembly
Bill title	Biodiversity Conservation Bill
Member(s) in charge	Mark Speakman
First reading	16 November 2016
Second reading	17 November 2016
Third reading	17 November 2016
Related legislation
Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, Nature Conservation Trust Act 2001, National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974
Status: Current legislation

The purpose of the Act was to effect biodiversity reform in New South Wales, in particular to provide better environmental outcomes and reduce burdensome regulations.^[3][5] The Act lists many more purposes under the rubric of "ecologically sustainable development" than the former Act, and specifically mentions "biodiversity conservation in the context of a changing climate".

As of May 2021^[update] and since mid-2019, the BC Act is administered by the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.^[6]

Threatened Species Scientific Committee

Division 7 of Part 4 of the BC Act established the Threatened Species Scientific Committee, which can provide advice to declare species, populations, and ecological communities as endangered.^[7] Under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, the Scientific Committee has declared various threatened species including the alpine she-oak skink (Cyclodomorphus praealtus) and the alpine tree frog (Litoria verreauxii alpina),^[8] while the Scientific Committee has determined "Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub" to be a critically endangered ecological community.^[9]

The main functions of the Threatened Species Scientific Committee include:^[6]

• Assessing the risk of extinction of a species in Australia and deciding which species should be listed as critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable or extinct in NSW;
• For species that are not listed as threatened species, deciding if there are populations of those species that should be listed as threatened in NSW;
• Assessing the risk of extinction of an ecological community in Australia and deciding which ecological communities should be listed as critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable or collapsed ecological communities;
• Deciding which key threats to native plants and animals should be declared key threatening processes under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (BC Act); and
• Reviewing and updating the lists of threatened species, populations and communities and key threatening processes in the schedules of the BC Act.