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Changing, combining or transferring an environmental authority
Use our forms and fees finder for information on applying for a new environmental authority (EA) or managing your existing EAs.
In Queensland, any activity that is defined as an environmentally relevant activity (ERA) requires a licence called an environmental authority (EA). If you are the holder of an EA you may want to:
- change or amend your EA (e.g. if you have changed your business practices, or have incorporated new technology in your operation)
- combine your separate EAs into a single EA (e.g. to amalgamate several existing EAs)
- transfer your EA (e.g. when buying or selling a business that includes a prescribed ERA, or when changing joint ownership of an EA).
You can apply to change, combine or transfer EAs at any time while your EA is in force. However, your administering authority may refuse to process your application if you have any fees outstanding.
This guide provides information about the application process for changing, combining or transferring EAs in Queensland.
Change or amend an environmental authority
Use our forms and fees finder for information on applying for a new environmental authority (EA) or managing your existing EAs.
Read additional information on environmentally relevant activity (ERA) 13A – Commercial cropping and horticulture in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.
As the holder of an EA, you may wish to amend your EA from time to time. Amending an EA may involve changes to conditions or adding new activities to an operation.
In some situations, the administering authority may also wish to amend your EA.
Follow the processes below to amend your EA (including changing the anniversary day or applying for new standard conditions).
Application to amend an EA
You can apply to amend your EA at any time while the EA is in force.
An amendment may be:
- a minor amendment, including
- converting all your EA conditions to standard conditions where you can meet all the eligibility criteria for standard conditions
- other minor amendments
- a major amendment.
To amend an EA where the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) is your administering authority, you can:
- for an ERA other than ERA 13A, complete the EA amendment and pay the application fee by credit card online through Online Services
- or
- for ERA 13A, complete the form Application to amend an EA for ERA 13A – Commercial cropping and horticulture in the Great Barrier Reef (ESR/2021/5615) (DOCX, 227KB) and submit to DESI using the details provided on the form
- for any other ERA, complete an Application to amend an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1733) (DOCX, 198KB) and submit the application form, any supporting material and the application fee to DESI using the postal details provided on the form.
Note: If approval of the amendment application for an EA would result in the EA being inconsistent with the relevant PRCP schedule, you must use the form Application to amend a PRCP schedule or joint PRCP schedule and environmental authority (ESR/2019/4956) (DOCX, 299KB) to amend both the EA and the PRCP schedule.
If applying for additional resource tenures through the Department of Resources, including sub-blocks and pipeline extensions, an amendment application must be approved for the EA before the tenure can be granted. The activity must not commence on the new tenure until the EA amendment and tenure approvals have both been granted.
If the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) is your administering authority, complete an Application to amend an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1733) (DOCX, 198KB) and submit the application form, any supporting material and the application fee to DAF, using the details provided on the form.
If your administering authority is DESI or DAF, your application fee will be $367.40. Where an assessment level decision determines that the application is for a major amendment, an additional assessment fee is also payable. For ERA 13A – Commercial cropping and horticulture in the Great Barrier Reef catchment, the assessment fee for a major amendment is $226.70. For all other ERAs, the assessment fee for a major amendment is 30% of the annual fee (this is the annual fee for the EA before it has been amended). You can find more information on this fee below.
If your administering authority is a local government, contact the local government for details on the forms and fees that apply to your application.
Read the guideline Major and minor amendments (ESR/2015/1684) (PDF, 653KB) for more information on the difference between major and minor amendments.
We encourage you to arrange a pre-lodgement meeting with your administering authority to work out if your application is for a minor or major amendment. If your administering authority is DESI, complete and submit the application for pre-lodgement services for an environmental authority. If your administering authority is DAF, email livestockregulator@daf.qld.gov.au to arrange a pre-lodgement meeting.
If your amendment is approved and a higher annual fee now applies to your EA, you must also pay a supplementary annual fee. You can find more information on this fee below.
Development permit
The activity that the amendment would authorise may not be allowable under the existing development permit. If so, you may need to change the conditions of the development permit or make a new development application.
If the amendment requires a development application under the Planning Act 2016, then you must make that application first. The amended EA cannot commence until the development permit takes effect.
Contact your local government and the Department of Housing, Local Government, Planning and Public Works to find out if you need to apply for a development approval before applying to change your EA. If the activity is in a port area, you will need to contact the relevant port authority.
Complete an amendment application form
To complete the amendment application form you will need to supply certain details regarding your proposed amendment (e.g. technical assessments of the impacts of the change on environmental values).
For more information on how to determine the impact on environmental values refer to the relevant technical guidelines.
'Properly made' amendment applications
You must address the applicable information requirements under chapter 5, part 7, division 2 of the Environmental Protection Act 1994. Where an amendment application does not meet these requirements, it will not be 'properly made'. The amendment application form provides prompts for applicants to address these matters. Where an amendment application does not meet these requirements, the administering authority will give you a notice to:
- explain why and in what ways they consider your application to be deficient
- explain what action you should take to address these matters
- inform how long you have to do these things.
If you do not take the action required and have given written notice to the administering authority that the action has been taken then your application will lapse and be returned to you without assessment.
Amendment application process
The process for amending your EA depends on the magnitude of your proposed change.
After receiving your application, the administering authority will make a decision whether your proposal is a minor or major amendment (an assessment level decision) and notify you of this decision and the assessment process that your amendment application will go through, within 10 business days. If a 'not properly' made notice is issued the assessment level decision will be made within 10 business days after you have provided written notice of your response. If your application is for a 'condition conversion' it will automatically be treated as a minor amendment.
If your proposal is a major amendment, the assessment fee (mentioned above) is payable once notification of the assessment level decision is issued. The assessment fee must be paid before the assessment of the amendment application can proceed.
The administering authority must assess a minor amendment within 10 business days of notifying you of the assessment level decision or, if the applicant agrees to extend the period by no more than 20 business days, within the extended period. If an assessment level decision is not needed because your application is for a 'condition conversion', your application will be assessed within 10 business days from when we receive it.
A major amendment goes through a process similar to the application for an EA. This will include public notification if the amendment is for a major amendment of a PRCP schedule (unless the change reduces the area of a non-use management area, or is likely to reduce, or cause no change to, the impacts on the environmental values); or the amendment is for a major amendment of an environmental authority for a resource activity.
Note: There are some exemptions to the notification stage. These exemptions mean that public notification may not be required for mining activities that do not relate to a mining lease (for example, exploration permits and mineral development licences) or an activity that has already been notified through an EIS and the activity has not changed.
Once your amendment application has been assessed, the administering authority will notify you of its decision. If the amendment is approved, your EA will be updated to reflect the changes.
Supplementary annual fee
If amending your EA results in an annual fee being payable that is higher than the annual fee payable prior to the amendment, then the difference between these fees (the supplementary annual fee) must be paid for the remainder of the licensing year from when the amendment takes effect.
The supplementary annual fee is payable to your administering authority within 20 business days after your amendment application is approved. For example, this would apply if the amendment was to add a new non-concurrence environmentally relevant activity (ERA), which has a higher annual fee than the existing ERA.
For more information on how your administering authority will calculate the supplementary annual fee, refer to the fee calculator (ESR/2015/1731) (XLSX, 74KB).
Conversion application for new standard conditions
If you are the holder of an eligible ERA for which standard conditions have been made, you may wish to make an application for a 'condition conversion'. To do this you should make an amendment application to convert all your EA conditions to standard conditions and submit it to your administering authority. These applications are assessed within 10 business days of being received.
To be eligible for this application you must also ensure you can meet the eligibility criteria and standard conditions developed for the activity. Check the list of activities suitable for standard applications to see if your activity is suitable and has standard conditions developed.
If DESI is your administering authority, you can make a conversion application by:
- completing the amendment application online through Online Services and paying the $367.40 application fee by credit card
- or
- completing the form Application to amend an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1733) (DOCX, 198KB), submitting it with any supporting material and paying the $367.40 application fee to DESI, using the details provided on the form (see application form for payment options).
If DAF is your administering authority, complete the form Application to amend an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1733) (DOCX, 198KB) and submit with any supporting material and the $367.40 application fee to DAF, using the details provided on the form.
Eligibility criteria and standard conditions do not apply to ERAs administered by local government. So this type of application cannot be made for ERAs administered by a local government.
If you can meet all the eligibility criteria but cannot comply with the standard conditions, you should make an amendment application to replace your existing conditions with the standard conditions you can comply with and variations to the standard conditions you cannot comply with.
Change the anniversary day of an EA
In some circumstances you may wish to change the anniversary day of your EA (e.g. to suit your business's reporting requirements).
If DESI is your administering authority, you can do this by submitting an application to change the anniversary day (ESR/2015/1732) (DOCX, 170KB), along with the $380.20 application fee. There will be an adjustment of your annual fee to account for the changed anniversary day, and you will need to pay this fee adjustment amount with your application.
For more information on how to calculate the annual fee adjustment, refer to:
- fee for changing the anniversary day (ESR/2015/1730) (PDF, 60KB)
- fee calculator (ESR/2015/1731) (XLSX, 74KB).
Also consider...
- Find out how to apply for an EA.
- Learn how to comply with an EA.
- Find out how to surrender or suspend an EA.
- Read the guideline on Approval processes for environmental authorities (ESR/2015/1743) (PDF, 884KB) for more details on EA assessment processes.
Combine or amalgamate environmental authorities
Use our forms and fees finder for information on applying for a new environmental authority (EA) or managing your existing EAs.
Read additional information on environmentally relevant activity (ERA) 13A – Commercial cropping and horticulture in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.
If you hold a number of environmental authorities (EAs), you may apply to combine your separate EAs into one amalgamated EA provided:
- they are all held by the same person, or the same multiple persons
- and
- they all have the same administering authority.
Note: If a progressive rehabilitation and closure plan schedule applies to your EAs, your amalgamated EA application needs to be accompanied by a proposed amalgamated PRC plan.
For example, it is not possible to amalgamate:
- an EA issued to John Smith with an EA issued to Jane Smith
- a number of EAs issued to partnerships where the partners are different for each EA (even if 1 partner is the same for all the EAs)
- an EA administered by the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) and another administered by a local government
- an EA administered by Brisbane City Council with an EA administered by Moreton Bay City Council.
It is not possible to apply for an amalgamated EA when one of the EAs has not taken effect. That is, you cannot apply for an amalgamated EA at the same time you are applying for an EA for activities that will be part of the amalgamated EA. First you have to obtain the EA and then you can apply separately to amalgamate the EAs.
Application for amalgamated EAs
If DESI is your administering authority, you can apply to amalgamate your EAs by completing the correct amalgamation application, indicating the type of amalgamated EA you are applying for.
There are 3 types of amalgamated EAs (see below for more information).
- Amalgamated corporate authority.
- Amalgamated project authority.
- Amalgamated local government authority.
You must pay an application fee of $380.20 to amalgamate EAs. Amalgamated corporate authorities may also require a pro-rata annual fee to be paid to align the existing EA anniversary dates to the new anniversary day.
If your administering authority decides to approve your application for an amalgamated authority, they will amalgamate your existing EAs, and issue you with the new amalgamated authority and, where applicable, a new PRCP schedule. Once issued, an amalgamated authority becomes an EA that you can transfer, amend or suspend like any other EA.
If the administering authority decides to approve your application for an amalgamated authority for a resource activity, you need to re-apply for an estimated rehabilitation cost (ERC) decision. Read the information sheet re-application for estimated rehabilitation cost decision (ESR/2019/4704) (PDF, 196KB) for more information on when you need to re-apply for an ERC decision.
If your circumstances change, and an amalgamated EA is no longer required, contact your administering authority. You may be able to amend, transfer or surrender all or part of your activity.
Amalgamated corporate authority
If you hold EAs across multiple sites, you may apply for an amalgamated corporate authority that combines all your authorities into a single EA. EAs that are combined into an amalgamated corporate authority do not have to be carried out as a single integrated operation, and may be in different locations.
As the holder of an amalgamated corporate authority you will have a single date for reporting and payment of fees, and hold an EA with the operating conditions across your multiple sites. Having an amalgamated corporate authority will not change the annual fees of the activities you carry out. You will still be required to pay an annual fee that is the sum of the fees for all the original EAs that were amalgamated.
Apply for an amalgamated corporate authority
If DESI is your administering authority, you can apply for an amalgamated corporate authority by completing the application to amalgamate 2 or more environmental authorities into an amalgamated corporate authority (ESR/2015/1734) (DOC, 411KB) and submitting it to DESI. Once approved, an EA will be issued to you containing all the conditions from your previous EAs.
Your application for an amalgamated corporate authority must nominate the anniversary day for the new environmental authority. Your annual fee will need to be adjusted to account for the time period between your current anniversary dates and your new anniversary day for each project site, if they were not all aligned. For help calculating the adjustment amount, use the fee calculator (ESR/2015/1731) (XLSX, 102KB).
If you also wish to change some of the conditions of 1 or more of the separate EAs, then you must also make an amendment application. Each process will run separately, and will follow the applicable time frames.
Amalgamated project authority
An amalgamated project authority applies to a project involving one or more EAs where the activities can be carried out as a single integrated operation. Your activities can be carried out as a single integrated operation if they are:
- carried out under the day-to-day management of a single responsible individual (e.g. a site or operations manager)
- operationally interrelated
- carried out at 1 or more places which are separated by distances short enough to allow feasible integrated day-to-day management of the activities.
Apply for an amalgamated project authority
If DESI is your administering authority, you can apply for an amalgamated project authority by completing the application to amalgamate two or more environmental authorities into an amalgamated project or local government authority (ESR/2015/1735) (DOC, 207KB) and submitting it to DESI for all your EAs you want to amalgamate.
If approved, your amalgamated EA will be issued to you containing all conditions from your previous EAs. Your annual fee will be a single fee equivalent to the highest annual fee you currently pay and you will have 1 annual reporting requirement.
Your new anniversary day will be the same as the anniversary day of your previous EA that had the highest annual fee. However, if the highest annual fee is the same for 2 or more of your previous EAs, you must nominate the anniversary day for 1 of the EAs with the highest annual fee as the anniversary day for the amalgamated EA. If you wish to amend the anniversary day to a date other than this, you will need to lodge a separate application to change the anniversary day of an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1732) (DOCX, 194KB) for the amalgamated EA.
Amalgamated local government authority
Local governments may amalgamate their EAs provided:
- the activities to be amalgamated do not constitute a significant business activity; that is, the activity is not conducted in competition with the private sector (e.g. a quarry selling to the public)
- the activities have an appropriate degree of integration.
Apply for an amalgamated local government authority
To apply for an amalgamated local government authority, complete the application to amalgamate two or more environmental authorities into an amalgamated project or local government authority (ESR/2015/1735) (DOCX, 207KB) and submit it to the administering authority for all your EAs. If approved, your amalgamated EA will be issued to you containing all conditions from your previous EAs.
Your annual fee will be a single fee equivalent to the highest EA fee you currently pay and you will have one annual reporting requirement.
Your new anniversary day will be the same as the anniversary day of your previous EA that had the highest annual fee. However, if the highest annual fee is the same for 2 or more of your previous EAs, you must nominate the anniversary day for 1 of the EAs with the highest annual fee as the anniversary day for the amalgamated EA. If you wish to amend the anniversary day to a date other than this, you will need to lodge a separate application to change the anniversary day of an environmental authority (ESR/2015/1732) (DOCX, 194KB) for the amalgamated EA.
Conditions of the amalgamated environmental authority
As the amalgamation process involves combining multiple EAs into a single EA, it can result in an amalgamated EA containing duplicate or conflicting conditions. The conditions of the amalgamated EA may be varied to the extent necessary for, or to avoid duplication, because of the amalgamation. The decision to vary conditions is made by the administering authority and conditions can only be varied if the applicant agrees to the variation in writing.
Also consider...
- Find out how to apply for an EA.
- Find out how to comply with an EA.
- Find out how to surrender or suspend an EA.
- Read the guideline on Approval processes for environmental authorities (PDF, 884KB) for more details on EA assessment processes.
Transfer an environmental authority
Use our forms and fees finder for information on applying for a new environmental authority (EA) or managing your existing EAs.
You can apply to transfer an EA for a prescribed activity, but not for an EA for a resource activity.
This is because an EA for a resource activity attaches to the resource tenure and transfers automatically when the resource tenure is transferred.
The business that you will be transferring the tenure and EA to must be a suitable operator.
Transfer an EA for a prescribed ERA
You may wish to transfer your EA in some situations. For example, if you sell a business that includes an EA, you will need to transfer the EA to the new business owner. Also, a transfer will be required when an EA has joint holders and:
- an existing joint holder wants to cease being a holder
- or
- a new joint holder is added.
For an EA holder to transfer EAs for prescribed environmentally relevant activities (ERAs) to another person, the EA holder will need to make a transfer application. You will not be able to make a transfer application where the EA relates to a trial activity (which includes an expiry date).
Requirements of a transfer application
To make a transfer application you must submit the completed request to transfer environmental authority holder(s) (ESR/2015/1718) (DOCX, 189KB) to the administering authority along with the correct fee.
Transfer to a suitable operator
The most important part of the transfer application is to demonstrate that the proposed new holder of the EA is registered as a suitable operator. This is because an EA transfer application can only be refused if the proposed holder is not a registered suitable operator.
Where all or part of the operation is being transferred, the new holder may wish to apply in advance for registration as a suitable operator by completing the form Application to be a registered suitable operator (ESR/2015/1771) (DOCX, 132KB) and submitting it to the Department of Environment, Science and Innovation, using the details supplied on the form. This application can also be included with the transfer application.
Inform land owners of transfer
In some instances, the holder of the EA may not own the land where their operation occurs. In these instances, if the transfer application is approved, the new holder of the EA is required to inform the owners of the land on which the activity takes place that they are the new holder.
This is a requirement that is generally covered by the commercial arrangements between parties for the lease of the land. Because the EA may involve a notifiable activity (activities with the potential to cause land contamination), it is essential that the land owners are aware of who is carrying out an activity on their land.
Financial assurance
If the EA includes a condition that the holder must not carry out, or allow the carrying out of, a relevant activity under the EA unless the holder has paid a financial assurance to the administering authority, the holder must apply for a decision about the amount and form of financial assurance using the Application for a decision on the amount and form of financial assurance for prescribed environmentally relevant activities (ESR/2015/1754) (DOCX, 136KB).
If the previous holder paid financial assurance for this activity, they can apply to discharge the financial assurance using the Application to amend or discharge financial assurance (ESR/2016/1752) (DOCX, 149KB).
Note: Subject to section 314(5) of the Environmental Protection Act 1994, the discharge may not be approved until any financial assurance required for the environmental authority has been given by the new holder and the transfer has taken effect.
Also consider...
- Find out how to apply for an EA.
- Learn how to comply with an EA.
- Find out how to surrender or suspend an EA.
- Read the guideline on Approval processes for environmental authorities (ESR/2015/1743) (PDF, 884KB) for more details on EA assessment processes.
De-amalgamate an environmental authority
Use our forms and fees finder to apply to de-amalgamate an environmental authority (EA).
You may wish to de-amalgamate an environmental authority (EA) where a single EA covers multiple activities or tenures, for example where an EA is approved for a single integrated operation, or where multiple EAs were amalgamated following their approval.
Note: If a progressive rehabilitation and closure plan schedule applies to your EA, your de-amalgamated EA application needs to be accompanied by proposed de-amalgamated PRC plans.
Note: If an estimated rehabilitation cost (ERC) decision is, or has been, in effect for the EA, your de-amalgamation EA application must be accompanied by an application for an ERC decision for each of the proposed de-amalgamated EAs.
In either of these cases, you may apply to de-amalgamate a single EA that covers multiple activities or that includes multiple resource tenures.
A resource project EA can only be de-amalgamated if:
- the project is no longer being carried out as a single integrated operation
- it is proposed that the project will no longer be carried out as a single integrated operation, or
- the existing holder is proposing to transfer the EA to another person for a resource tenure (a transfer tenure).
You must complete the declaration in the application form that you meet these requirements if you are de-amalgamating a resource project EA.
Follow the processes below to de-amalgamate your EA.
Application to de-amalgamate a relevant EA
You can apply to de-amalgamate a relevant EA at any time.
Submit an application to de-amalgamate an EA (ESR/2015/1729) (DOCX, 204KB) to your administering authority. No application fee applies.
We will make a decision on your de-amalgamation application within 15 business days of receiving it unless an extension of not more than 10 business days is agreed to with the applicant. An extension may be necessary where the applicant requests amendments to those conditions relevant or obsolete, as a result of the application.
Where an ERC is, or has been, in effect for the EA, the administering authority can only de-amalgamate your EA if an ERC decision has been made for each of the proposed de-amalgamated EAs. The application to de-amalgamate an EA must be accompanied by an application for a decision on the ERC (ESR/2018/4426) (DOCX, 170KB) for each proposed de-amalgamated EA. Also, the de-amalgamation of the EA only takes affect if the proposed holder of each de-amalgamated EA has paid a contribute to the scheme fund or given a surety for the EA under the Mineral and Energy Resources (Financial Provisioning) Act 2018.
© The State of Queensland 1995–2024
- Last reviewed: 08 Sep 2021
- Last updated: 08 Sep 2021