Western Australia is the first state to advance a bilateral agreement with the federal government to unify its environmental assessment processes.
Environment and Water Minister Murray Watt and Premier Roger Cook signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop and implement a bilateral assessment agreement, with the ambition for a bilateral approval agreement to follow.
The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC) reforms passed in December created a pathway for states and territories to share information with the Commonwealth.