165BPower of entry on land before designation of project area

165B Power of entry on land before designation of project area

(1) At any time before a declared project becomes an approved project, a project authority, or a person authorised in writing by a project authority, may enter any land and do all things necessary or convenient for investigative purposes to determine—

(a) whether the land should be included in the project area for the declared project; or

(b) the suitability of the land for the purposes of the declared project.

(2) Without limiting subsection (1), the project authority, or a person authorised in writing by the project authority, may do any of the following on the land—

(a) bring onto the land, and remain on the land with, any assistants, vehicles, machinery or equipment;

(b) affix or establish any trigonometrical stations, survey pegs, marks or poles on the land and from time to time alter, remove or reinstate them;

(c) dig or bore into the land and take samples of soil, rock, ground water or minerals;

(d) undertake flora and fauna surveys and archaeological investigations and take samples of plants;

(e) undertake geotechnical and site survey work;

(f) undertake ecological surveys;

(g) undertake utilities surveys;

(h) undertake contamination investigations;

(i) determine site conditions (including undertaking noise monitoring).

(3) The project authority must give to the occupier of the land, and if the occupier is not the owner, the owner of the land—

(b) a statement of the principal rights and obligations of the occupier or owner (as the case may be) under this Act—

at least 7 days before the land is entered under subsection (1).

(4) A person may enter land under this section earlier than the expiration of 7 days if the occupier consents to the entry.

(5) The project authority need not give notice in writing under this section in an emergency.

(6) A person must not under this section enter land used primarily for residential purposes except between 7.30 a.m. and 6.00 p.m. unless the occupier consents to the entry.

S. 165C inserted by No. 43/2021 s. 190.