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LAND (PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT) (BUSHFIRE EMERGENCY) REGULATIONS 2003 (NO 4 OF 2003)
2003
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY FOR THE AUSTRALIAN
CAPITAL
TERRITORY
LAND (PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT) ACT 1991
LAND (PLANNING AND
ENVIRONMENT) (BUSHFIRE EMERGENCY) REGULATIONS 2003
SL2003-4
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Circulated by authority of
Simon Corbell MLA
Minister for Planning
AUSTRALIAN
CAPITAL TERRITORY
LAND (PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT) (BUSHFIRE EMERGENCY)
REGULATIONS 2003
SUBORDINATE LAW No. SL
2003-4
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
These are new regulations under the Land (Planning and Environment) Act
1991.
These regulations (“the Land Bushfire Emergency
Regulations”) apply to buildings and structures affected by the bushfires
of January 2003 and provide for them to be demolished and the land cleared
under a simplified procedure.
The Land Bushfire Emergency Regulations
work in conjunction with the Building (Bushfire Emergency) Regulations 2003
(“the Building Bushfire Emergency Regulations”). Normally a
development application and then building approval are both required for
demolition. The two sets of regulations reduce these to one process.
The Land Bushfire Emergency Regulations provide for the identification
of the land where buildings and structures were destroyed by bushfires, identify
the period of the bushfires and exempt demolition and clearance on that land
from approval as development under the Land (Planning and Environment) Act,
under certain conditions.
One of these conditions is that a specific
plan of works is drawn up for the demolition and the work complies with an
agreement between the owner and the person carrying out the demolition approved
in general terms or specifically by the building controller (a statutory officer
under the Building Act). Another condition is that the plan of works must be
endorsed by a construction practitioner registered under the Construction
Practitioners Registration Act 1998. In this respect the plan of works
supersedes requirements of the Building Regulations 1972.
Details
Regulation 1 is a formal regulation that gives the name of the regulations.
Regulation 2 is a formal regulation that links the commencement of the
regulations to their notification on the legislation register.
Regulation 3 is a formal regulation that makes a dictionary of defined
terms part of the Regulations.
Regulation 4 is a formal regulation that indicates that notes included
in the Regulations are limited to explanatory purposes.
Regulation 5 states that the regulations are intended to assist people
whose property was affected by fire during the bushfire emergency to clear their
land.
Regulation 6 identifies the period of the bushfire emergency.
Part 6 of the Land (Planning and Environment) Act deals with approval
processes and requires approval for what it defines as development.
Regulation 7 sets out conditions under which that approval is not
required.
Sub-regulation 7 (1) provides for the making of a list of
land affected by the bushfire emergency and sub-regulation 7(2) requires the
publication of that list on the legislation register.
Sub-regulations 7
(3) states what requirements apply if the exemption from approval is to be
valid:
§ There must be a plan of works for the demolition involved. The details of a plan of works appear in regulation 8 but are similar to requirements that the Building Regulations would apply to demolition if the Building Bushfire Emergency Regulations did not modify the requirements for building approval.
§ The plan of works must be accepted by a registered building practitioner. Regulation 9 limits the circumstances in which this acceptance may occur and specifies that a building practitioner must be registered under the Construction Practitioners Registration Act 1998. The Building Act deals with the relevant functions of registered building practitioners.
§ Demolition work must follow the plan of works.
§ The land owner and the person responsible for the clearance must make an agreement to follow additional requirements approved in general terms or for the specific clearance by the building controller, a statutory office holder under the Building Act. This provision is intended to provide for a small number of development conditions and arrangements for co-ordination with the requirements of agencies administering other legislation applicable to clearance that would be part of a demolition proposal that required approval but without transferring responsibility for ensuring compliance to the relevant building practitioner.
§ The clearance must comply with the
Australian Standard on the demolition of structures (AS
2601).
Sub-regulations 7 (4) and 7 (5) set out the kinds of development
for which approval is not required.
Regulation 8 sets out the details of plan of works.
Regulation 9 describes the circumstances in which a building
practitioner may accept a plan of works.
The dictionary for the regulations gives the meaning of references to
“building code”, “building controller”, “bushfire
emergency” and “plan of works” in the
regulations.
Financial Implications
Nil.