Report on the Environment Protection Reform Bill 2025
Payments to destroy and lessons not learned
Authors
The Environmental Protection Reform Bill 2025 would weaken environmental protection by replicating the problematic NSW biodiversity offsetting scheme. The Bill establishes a ‘payments to destroy’ fund that transfers responsibility for nature destruction from project proponents to the public, creating time lags in responding to environmental impacts and reducing the likelihood that such responses will replace like with like. The Bill should not be passed without significant amendment.