Basslink - Joint Advisory Panel

Contents

Panel Established
Panel Membership
Panel Terms of Reference
Victorian Ministers Terms of Reference

Panel Established

A Joint Advisory Panel has been established to carry out the assessment of the Basslink proposal. The Panel has five members, two appointed by the Tasmanian Resource Planning and Development Commission, two appointed by the Victorian Minister for Planning and one appointed by the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage.

The Tasmanian Resource Planning and Development Commission has delegated to the Panel its powers and functions under the State Policies and Projects Act 1993 and the Resource Planning and Development Commission Act 1997 to enable the Panel to undertake an integrated assessment of the Basslink proposal.

The Panel has been appointed by the Honourable John Thwaites, MP, to carry out an inquiry into the environmental effects of the proposed Basslink proposal to link the electricity grids of Tasmania and Victoria by submarine cable as required under Section 9 of the Victorian Environment Effects Act 1978.

Panel Membership

Peter Davies

Appointed by the Victorian Minister for Planning

Mr Davies holds qualifications in surveying, planning and cartography. In 1992 he was awarded the Francis Ormond Medal for outstanding service to RMIT. Mr Davies has been associated with Local Government as a Councillor for 13 years.
He has served on a wide range of panel hearings dealing with rural planning, environmental impact assessments, land development codes, regional strategies, significant policy matters, and a diverse range of other planning aspects.

Jenny Love

Appointed by the Victorian Minister for Planning

Ms Love holds qualifications in Arts - History and Environmental Science. In 1991 she was appointed to the Independent Panel Register (Victoria). Prior to this appointment she was a Member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Planning Division (now Victorian and Civil and Administrative Tribunal). As a Tribunal and Panel member, Ms Love has participated in and chaired hearings on a broad range of matters, particularly projects subject to Environmental Effects Statements. From 1982 Ms Love was adviser to the Minister for Conservation and Planning and Environment (Victoria) on a wide range of public policy areas. These included environment protection and assessment, conservation strategies, land use planning on public and private land, Aboriginal heritage and forest management.

John Ashe PSM

Appointed by the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment & Heritage

Mr Ashe holds qualifications in Environmental Law, Business Administration and Economics. Mr Ashe was formerly Assistant Secretary with the Department of the Environment, Sport & Territories, Environment Assessment Branch. He administered environmental assessments of many hundreds of proposals across the full range of Australian industry: mining, industrial, pipeline, petroleum exploration & production, natural resources, tourism, forestry and telecommunications. In 1997 he was awarded the Public Service Medal (PSM) in the 1997 Queen's Birthday Honours for 'outstanding public service through the management of the Commonwealth's environmental impact assessment legislation'.

Associate Professor Bruce Davis AM

Appointed by the Resource Planning & Development Commission

Associate Professor Davis possesses qualifications and senior executive experience in civil engineering, economics and administration. Associate Professor Davis is a Former Head of the Department of Political Science, University of Tasmania and has also served as Program Chair in Public Policy and Public Sector Management, Murdoch University, Western Australia. He acts in an advisory and consulting capacity to State and Federal agencies involved in environmental policy and natural resources management. Associate Professor Davis is a part-time Commissioner of the Tasmanian Resource Planning and Development Commission. Associate Professor Davis was made a Member of the Order of Australia in January 1990, for services to heritage and conservation.

Julian Green

Appointed by the Resource Planning & Development Commission

Mr Green holds qualifications in law. Mr Green is currently the Executive Commissioner of the Resource Planning and Development Commission, Tasmania. Mr Green is former Secretary of the Department of Premier and Cabinet and Department of Justice. Mr Green is also former Chairman, Poppy Advisory and Control Board and the Sustainable Development Advisory Council.

In his capacity as Chairman of the Sustainable Development Advisory Council and Commissioner of the Resource Planning and Development Commission Mr Green has been involved in carrying out integrated assessments of projects of State significance, assessing and reporting on draft State Policies, state of the environment reporting, approval of planning schemes and amendments, advice to government on planning issues and the conduct of hearings into objections to proposed planning schemes and amendments.

Panel Terms of Reference

Schedule 2 of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Tasmanian, Victorian and Commonwealth governments
Terms of Reference -

Basslink Joint Advisory Panel

The Joint Advisory Panel (JAP) is to perform the functions ascribed to it in the Combined Assessment/Approvals Process (CAAP) in Schedule 1 to this MOU, in relation to the project proposal of Basslink Pty Ltd for a link between the electricity grids of Tasmania and Victoria. It is to do so in accordance with the following statutes -

State Policies and Projects Act (Tas.)

Resource Planning and Development Commission Act 1997 (Tas.)

Environment Effects Act 1978 (Vic.)

Environment Protection (Impact of Proposals) Act 1974 (Cth)

The principal functions of the JAP are -

to issue draft guidelines for the scope and content of an EIS/EES and a SECIS in relation to the project proposal (and of such studies as may be considered necessary in order that the EIS/EES and SECIS properly address the potential environmental, social and economic effects of the proposal), following consultation with the proponent, the Victorian EES Consultative Committee and other relevant parties;
to finalise the guidelines for the EIS/EES and SECIS following their release for public comment;
to endorse the draft EIS/EES and SECIS as suitable for public exhibition;
to prepare a draft integrated assessment report (referred to in the CAAP as the "JAP report") to meet the statutory requirements of Tasmania, Victoria and the Commonwealth, with the report to contain advice on whether the project proposal should be approved, and if so, with what conditions if any;
to release the report for public comment and hold public hearings in relation to the report following the receipt of public submissions;
to finalise the integrated assessment report; and
to advise the relevant Ministers of the three jurisdictions of the need for any amendment or addition to these terms of reference, and to report to the Ministers as the need arises.

Terms of Reference

Issued by Victorian Minister for Planning

Environment Effects Act 1978
Terms of Reference
Basslink Joint Advisory Panel

The Joint Advisory Panel is to report to the Tasmanian, Victorian and Commonwealth Governments on the merits of the Basslink proposal of National Grid International to link the electricity grids of Tasmania and Victoria.

A Combined Assessment and Approvals Process (CAAP) has been agreed to integrate Victorian, Tasmanian and Commonwealth statutory requirements. This involves preparation by the proponent of an integrated Environment Effects Statement (EES), Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Social, Economic and Community Impact Statement (SECIS). An EES is a specific requirement of Victoria's Environment Effects Act 1978. The CAAP also involves preparation of an Integrated Assessment Report by a Joint Advisory Panel.

I have appointed the Joint Advisory Panel as an inquiry under section 9 of the Environment Effects Act 1978 to investigate the Basslink proposal.

The Terms of Reference for the inquiry under the Environment Effects Act are:

l . To inquire into the environmental and related social and economic impacts of the Basslink proposal and any reasonable variations to the proposal, as identified by the Joint Advisory Panel or put forward by the proponent, as this relates to Victoria.

2. The principal functions of the inquiry are -

To issue draft guidelines for the scope and content of an EES in relation to the project proposal (and of such studies as may be considered necessary to properly address the potential environmental, social and economic effects of the proposal), doing so in consultation with the proponent, the Victorian EES Consultative Committee and other relevant parties;
To finalise the guidelines for the EES following their release for public comment;
To endorse the EES as suitable for public exhibition;
To hold public hearings in relation to the exhibited EES following the receipt of public submissions;
To prepare a draft Integrated Assessment Report (referred to in the CAAP as the "JAP report"), with the report to contain advice on whether the project proposal should be approved, and if so, with what conditions if any;
To release the draft Integrated Assessment Report for public comment and hold public hearings in relation to the report following the receipt of public submissions;
To finalise the Integrated Assessment Report and provide this to the Minister for Planning within eight weeks of the last hearing day of the inquiry, or such later date as may be approved; and
To advise the Minister for Planning of the need for any amendment or addition to these Terms of Reference, and to report to the Minister as the need arises.

3. To conduct the inquiry hearings in accordance with the following principles:

The inquiry hearings will be conducted in an open, orderly and equitable manner with a minimum of formality and without the necessity for legal representation and such that parties without legal representation are not disadvantaged (cross-examination to be strictly controlled by the inquiry chair and prohibited where not relevant); and
The inquiry process will aim to be exploratory and constructive, where the adversarial behaviour is minimised.

The Hon John Thwaites MP
Minister for Planning