• Lawyers in Sydney
• Lawyers in Melbourne
• Lawyers in Brisbane
• Lawyers in Perth
• Family lawyers
• Employment lawyers
• Criminal lawyers
• Wills and estates lawyers
• Find a lawyer

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally passed by both Houses of the Parliament and assented to. It will not be expanded to deal with provisions inserted in this Act after assent.

(2) Column 3 of the table contains additional information that is not part of this Act. Information in this column may be added to or edited in any published version of this Act.

3 Objects

(1) The first object of this Act is to introduce a single national reporting framework for the reporting and dissemination of information related to greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gas projects, energy consumption and energy production of corporations to: (b) inform government policy formulation and the Australian public; and (c) meet Australia’s international reporting obligations; and (d) assist Commonwealth, State and Territory government programs and activities; and (e) avoid the duplication of similar reporting requirements in the States and Territories. (2) The second object of this Act is to contribute to the achievement of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets by ensuring that each of the following outcomes (the safeguard outcomes) are achieved: (a) net covered emissions of greenhouse gases from the operation of a designated large facility do not exceed the baseline applicable to the facility; (b) total net safeguard emissions for all of the financial years between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2030 do not exceed a total of 1,233 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence; (c) net safeguard emissions decline to: (i) no more than 100 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence for the financial year beginning on 1 July 2029; and (ii) zero for any financial year to begin after 30 June 2049; (d) the 5‑year rolling average safeguard emissions for each financial year that begins after 30 June 2024 are lower than the past 5‑year rolling average safeguard emissions for that financial year; (e) the responsible emitter for each designated large facility has a material incentive to invest in reducing covered emissions from the operation of the facility; (f) the competitiveness of trade‑exposed industries is appropriately supported as Australia and its regions seize the opportunities of the move to a global net zero economy.

4 Constitutional basis for Act

This Act relies on: (a) the Commonwealth’s legislative powers under paragraphs 51(xi), (xx), (xxix) and (xxxix) of the Constitution; and (b) any implied legislative powers of the Commonwealth.

5 Act excludes some State and Territory laws

This Act is intended to apply to the exclusion of a law of a State or Territory, or a part of such a law: (a) that provides for the reporting or disclosure of information related to: (i) greenhouse gas emissions; or (ii) greenhouse gas projects; or (iii) energy consumption; or (iv) energy production; and (b) that the regulations provide is a law, or part of a law, to which this subsection applies; so far as the law, or part of the law, would otherwise apply in relation to a constitutional corporation.

5A Crown to be bound

(1) This Act binds the Crown in each of its capacities. (2) This Act does not make the Crown liable to a pecuniary penalty or to be prosecuted for an offence. (3) The protection in subsection (2) does not apply to an authority of the Crown.

6 Extension to external Territories

This Act extends to every external Territory.

6A Extension to exclusive economic zone and continental shelf

(1) This Act extends to a matter relating to the exercise of Australia’s sovereign rights in the exclusive economic zone or the continental shelf. (2) Despite subsection 13AB(1) of the Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973, this Act extends to acts, omissions, matters and things directly or indirectly connected with the exploration of, or exploitation of the natural resources of, the continental shelf in the Greater Sunrise special regime area. (3) Subsection (2) does not limit subsection (1). (4) Despite subsections (1) and (2), the safeguard provisions do not apply to a facility in the Greater Sunrise special regime area.

6C Application to foreign ships

This Act does not apply to the extent that its application would be inconsistent with the exercise of rights of foreign ships in: (a) the territorial sea; or (b) the exclusive economic zone; or (c) waters of the continental shelf; in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Division 2—Interpretation

7 Definitions

In this Act:

1 April, when used in the safeguard provisions, means:

(a) if the 1 April concerned is a business day—that 1 April; or
(b) if the 1 April concerned is not a business day—the first business day after that 1 April.

5‑year rolling average safeguard emissions, for a financial year, means the amount, in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalence, that is one fifth of the total amount of safeguard emissions for the 5 previous financial years.

account number, in relation to a Registry account, has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011.

activity includes:

(a) a condition; or
(b) a circumstance; or
(c) a state of affairs;

relating to: (d) solid waste; or (e) carbon capture and storage; or (f) other storage; or (g) stockpiling; or (h) any other matter or thing.

approved by the Regulator means approved by the Regulator, in writing, for the purposes of the provision in which the term occurs.

Note: For variation and revocation, see subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

associated provisions means the following provisions:

(a) the provisions of a legislative instrument made under this Act;
(b) the provisions of a legislative instrument made under the regulations;
(c) sections 134.1, 134.2, 135.1, 135.2, 135.4, 136.1, 137.1 and 137.2 of the Criminal Code, in so far as those sections relate to:
(i) this Act; or
(ii) a legislative instrument made under this Act; or
(iii) a legislative instrument made under the regulations.

audit information means information obtained by or on behalf of an audit team leader in the course of carrying out a greenhouse and energy audit.

audit team leader means a registered greenhouse and energy auditor appointed to carry out a greenhouse and energy audit or a safeguard audit.

audit team member, in relation to a greenhouse and energy audit or a safeguard audit, means a person assisting the audit team leader to carry out the audit.

Australian carbon credit unit has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011.

Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets means:

(a) if:
(i) Australia’s current nationally determined contribution was communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement in June 2022; and
(ii) that nationally determined contribution has not been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement;
the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets set out in paragraphs 10(1)(a) and (b) of the Climate Change Act 2022; or
(b) in any other case—the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets included in:
(i) Australia’s current nationally determined contribution communicated in accordance with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement; or
(ii) if that nationally determined contribution has been adjusted in accordance with paragraph 11 of Article 4 of the Paris Agreement—that nationally determined contribution, as adjusted and in force from time to time.

authorised officer means an officer appointed under section 57.

avoid, in relation to emissions of greenhouse gases, includes reduce or eliminate.

baseline emissions number has the meaning given by section 22XL.

biodiversity audit has the same meaning as in the Nature Repair Act 2023.

biodiversity audit report has the same meaning as in the Nature Repair Act 2023.

business day means a day that is not:

(a) a Saturday; or
(b) a Sunday; or
(c) a public holiday in the Australian Capital Territory.

business unit has the meaning given by the regulations.

carbon abatement means:

(a) the removal of one or more greenhouse gases from the atmosphere; or
(b) the avoidance of emissions of one or more greenhouse gases.

carbon abatement contract has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011.

carbon capture and storage means:

(a) the storage of a greenhouse gas substance in a part of a geological formation; or
(b) the injection of a greenhouse gas substance into a part of a geological formation for the purposes of such storage; or
(c) the capture, compression, processing, offloading, transportation or piped conveyance of a greenhouse gas substance, where the compression, processing, offloading, transportation or piped conveyance is for the purposes of such storage.

An expression used in this definition has the same meaning as in the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006. For this purpose, assume that each reference in the definition of greenhouse gas substance in section 7 of that Act to a prescribed greenhouse gas were a reference to a greenhouse gas (within the meaning of this Act).

carbon dioxide equivalence, of an amount of greenhouse gas, means the amount of the gas multiplied by a value specified in the regulations in relation to that kind of greenhouse gas.

Chapter 5 body corporate has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001.

civil penalty provision has the meaning given by section 29.

Commonwealth Registry account has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011.

constitutional corporation means a corporation to which paragraph 51(xx) of the constitution applies.

consumption, of energy, has the meaning given by section 10.

controlling corporation means a constitutional corporation that does not have a holding company incorporated in Australia.

court means:

(a) the Federal Court of Australia; or
(b) the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2).

covered emissions has the meaning given by section 22XI.

designated financial year means:

(a) the financial year beginning on 1 July 2012; or
(b) a later financial year.

designated generation facility means a facility that is:

(a) attributable to the industry sector mentioned in item 54 of Schedule 2 to the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Regulations 2008 (which deals with electricity generation); and
(b) not a vertically integrated production process (within the meaning of those regulations).

designated large facility has the meaning given by section 22XJ.

Doha Amendment means the amendments to the Kyoto Protocol that:

(a) were adopted by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, in Decision 1/CMP.8; and
(b) are set out in Annex I to that Decision.

Note 1: The Doha Amendment was adopted in Doha, Qatar, in December 2012.

Note 2: The Doha Amendment could in 2014 be viewed on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change website (http://www.unfccc.int).

electronic notice transmitted to the Regulator has the same meaning as in the Australian National Registry of Emissions Units Act 2011.

eligible offsets project has the same meaning as in the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011.

emission of greenhouse gas means:

(a) a scope 1 emission of greenhouse

This is an opening excerpt, not the complete document.