This glossary includes direct or paraphrased definitions, and some explanatory notes, for many key terms used in the LUAA and on these information pages.
Acronyms
BGLC – Barengi Gadjin Land Council
DEECA – Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action
DPC – Department of Premier and Cabinet
DTF – Department of Treasury and Finance
ERIA – Earth Resource or Infrastructure Agreement
LUAA – (WJJWJ) Land Use Activity Agreement
PLA – Public Land Authorisation
RSA – (WJJWJ) Recognition and Settlement Agreement
SPW – Specified Public Work
WJJWJ – Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia and Jupagulk (the peoples, or in language guli, who make up the Wotjobaluk Nations)
Agricultural Lease
Agricultural Lease means a lease where the primary purpose of the lease is to use the land for:
- cultivation for the purpose of selling the produce of the cultivation (whether in a natural, processed or converted state)
- the maintenance of animals or poultry for the purpose of selling the animals or poultry or their natural increase or bodily produce
- the cultivation or propagation for sale of plants, or
- keeping, or breeding aquatic animals or cultivating or propagating aquatic plants.
Related information: Is the activity a Public Land Authorisation (lease, licence and permits)? at What kind of activity is it?
Commercial Purpose vs Community Purpose
In the LUAA, the BGLC has lower procedural rights for certain activities when they occur for the benefit of the wider community. This concession is reflected in the definitions of the terms 'community' and 'commercial' in the LUAA.
For example, Commercial Purposes do not necessarily have a strong ‘business’ or ‘for-profit’ character.
In the case of works on land, anything that is not covered by the definition of Specified Public Work (see below) is considered works for a Commercial purpose.
In the case of Public Land Authorisations, ‘Commercial purpose’ is defined to mean everything that doesn’t fit within the strict definition of ‘community purpose’.
To qualify as being for a ‘community’ purpose under the LUAA, a lease, licence or permit must meet two criteria: one for its actual purpose, and another for the grantee organisation.
1. Purpose: the lease, licence or permit must be:
- solely or primarily for non-commercial community, social, religious, educational, health, charitable or sporting purposes, or
- for non-commercial services aimed at improving community safety or welfare and not of a commercial nature.
AND
2. Organisation: the organisation receiving the public land authorisation must:
- be not-for-profit
- not operate gaming equipment under the Gambling Regulation Act 2003 (poker machines, etc.), and
- not have, or plan to have, a turnover of $1 million in operating the leased premises.
A lease, licence or permit would be considered ‘commercial’ if it failed any of the above limitations on what is considered ‘community purpose’.
Related information at What kind of activity is it?:
- Is the activity a Public Land Authorisation (lease, licence and permits)?
- Is the activity land clearing and other major works for commercial purposes?
Decision Maker
Under the Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010, the responsibility for ensuring LUAA compliance falls on the person or organisation that is the legal Decision Maker for the activity. This includes those who have the statutory responsibility to:
- manage public land,
- issue legal authorisations such as permits, licences, or leases, or
- transfer title to that land, or revoke or change its reservation.
See also the definition of a Responsible Person (below).
Earth resource or infrastructure authorisation (ERIA)
The Act defines ‘earth resource or infrastructure authorisation’ to mean any of the following:
- a licence granted under section 25 of the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990
- an extractive industry work authority granted under section 77I of the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990
- a written consent for petroleum operation given under section 138 of the Petroleum Act 1998
- the acceptance under Division 3 of Part 9 of the Pipelines Act 2005 of an Environment Management Plan
- a written consent given for geothermal energy operation under section 80 of the Geothermal Energy Resources Act 2005
- the acceptance by the Minister of an environment plan under the regulations made under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2010, or
- an approval for greenhouse gas operation under section 193 of the Greenhouse Gas Geological Sequestration Act 2008.
Related information: Earth Resource or Infrastructure Authorisation at What kind of activity is it?
New vehicular road, etc.
The LUAA does not specifically define "new vehicular road, track bridge or railway" but the relevant references go on to specify "where none of these has previously been constructed." It also distinguishes them from "Road Works or Rail Works", which include such works as widening, overtaking lanes and duplication (see definition below for the full lists).
New vehicular roads and Road Works outside road reserves (which are Major Public Works and hence Negotiation activities) are also distinguished from 'walking tracks' and ‘other tracks (where the affected land has been disturbed from prior works)’, which are Minor Public Works and hence Advisory activities if the relevant land is not excluded from the LUAA.
Related information:
- Exclusions from the LUAA at Does the LUAA apply to this land?
- Categorisation of public works activities, where the LUAA does apply, at What kind of activity is it?
Public Land Authorisation
Public Land Authorisation (PLA) means any of the following:
- a lease, licence, permit or other authority under the:
- National Parks Act 1975
- Crown Land (Reserves) Act 1978
- Forests Act 1958
- Land Act 1958
- a tour operator licence under Part IIA of the Wildlife Act 1975
- a consent within the meaning of the Marine and Coastal Act 2018
- a lease under section 3 of the Land (Surf Life Saving Association) Act 1967
- a licence under Division 2 of Part 5 of the Water Act 1989 to construct any works on a waterway or a bore, or
- a Carbon Sequestration Agreement under section 45 of the Climate Change Act 2010.
Note that Agricultural Leases are a type of PLA, if they are issued under any of the above Acts.
However, their activity classification depends on the size of their area as well as their duration.
Note also that issuing other kinds of permits, including Planning Permits under the Planning and Environment Act 1987, are not ‘land use activities’ regulated by the LUAA.
Related information:
- Is the activity already authorised? at What kind of activity is it?
- Is the activity a Public Land Authorisation (lease, licence and permits)? at What kind of activity is it?
Rail Works
See Road Works (below) for general guidance and clause 1.1 of the LUAA for specific details.
Responsible Person
The Traditional Owner Settlement Act 2010 defines the ‘Responsible Person’ as the person who is required, under that Act, to reach agreement with BGLC in a Negotiation or Agreement activity. Depending on the type of land use activity, that may be the decision maker or another person, such as the applicant for a PLA.
The Responsible Person (RP) is required to negotiate in good faith with BGLC about whether and on what conditions the activity may proceed. The RP must also pay BGLC's reasonable costs of negotiating.
The RP may or may not be the person ‘responsible’ for negotiating and paying Community Benefits. In some cases, the State has undertaken this responsibility, even where the RP is another person (such as an applicant for a PLA). In these cases, the State will pay the Community Benefits, although the Responsible Person may also agree to community benefits that are not payments.
The following table specifies who, in practical terms, is ‘responsible’ for these different matters, depending on the type of activity and who is the Decision Maker (DM).
The second column identifies the Responsible Person (RP).
The third column identifies who provides Community Benefits, and the basis on which their value is determined (i.e., according to Schedule 7 or by negotiation with BGLC).
| Activity | Responsible Person (negotiates about the activity and pays BGLC's costs) | Community Benefits - who pays, and on what basis? |
|---|---|---|
| Alienation (sale) in fee simple | Decision Maker (always Department of Treasury and Finance for this activity) | State, per LUAA Schedule 7.
|
| Clearing land (other than for Major Public Works or under Public Land Authorisation) | Decision Maker | If State is DM: State, per LUAA Schedule 7. If local government, statutory authority or another person is DM: DM, negotiable. |
| Major works for commercial purpose | Decision Maker | If State is DM: State, per LUAA Schedule 7. If local government, statutory authority or another person is DM: DM, negotiable. |
| Major Public Works | Decision Maker | If State is DM: State, per LUAA Schedule If local government, statutory authority or another person is DM: DM, negotiable. |
Public Land Authorisation that is a Negotiation or Agreement activity (includes Agricultural Leases >40ha and 10+ years) | Applicant | If State is DM: State, per LUAA Schedule If ever State is not DM: Applicant, negotiable. |
| Earth Resource or Infrastructure Authorisation (ERIA) for commercial production, or where applicant does not agree to standard conditions. | Applicant | Applicant, negotiable. |
Related information at What's the process?:
- Negotiation activities
- Agreement activities
Road Works and Rail Works
The following guidance focuses on Road Works. Note that there are parallel provisions in the LUAA for Rail Works.
Broadly speaking, Road Works (as defined in the LUAA) are significant works on and around existing roads. They are different from the construction of new vehicular roads, and they do not include maintenance works on roads.
Specifically, Road Works in the LUAA means the construction, installation, or improvement of infrastructure associated with an existing road. It includes the specific items in the list below, and any road work activities that will have a similar impact on the land, or on Traditional Owner Rights, to these items:
- intersection and junction improvements
- pedestrian and cyclist facilities (including overpasses, underpasses, shared user paths and trails)
- bridgeworks
- roadside rest areas and wayside stops
- new stand sites and stack sites
- overtaking lanes
- shoulder widening
- lane widening
- road realignment, and
- duplication of a road.
Note that there are many kinds of works on roads that would not fall within this definition, such as maintenance and repair works.
Road Works may be Major or Minor Public Works, depending on where they occur in relation to the road reserve or existing footprint.
Road Works will be Major Public Works if any of the works extend:
- beyond the road reserve (if any), or else
- more than 1m beyond the footprint of the existing road and any infrastructure which is required for the construction, establishment, operation or use of the road.
Road Works will be Minor Public Works if they occur entirely:
- within the road reserve (if any), or else
- on land that is no more than 1m beyond the footprint of the existing road and any infrastructure which is required for the construction, establishment, operation or use of the road.
However, note that in many if not all instances, Road Works that would qualify as Minor Public Works will be occurring on land that is excluded from the LUAA area. That is, within a road reserve where a road has already been constructed (or within 1m of the footprint of a road previously constructed on other public land).
Related information:
- Roads at Does the LUUA apply to this land?
- Is the activity specified public works? at What kind of activity is it?
Specified Public Works
Specified Public Works are any of the following works, providing they are for a public purpose:
- a road, railway, bridge or other transport facility (other than an airport or port)
- a jetty or wharf
- a navigation marker or other navigational facility
- an electricity transmission or distribution facility
- a gas transmission or distribution facility
- lighting of streets or other public places
- a well or bore for obtaining water
- a pipeline or other water supply or reticulation facility
- a drainage facility, or a levee or other device for the management of water flows
- an irrigation channel or other irrigation facility
- a sewerage facility other than a treatment facility
- a cable, antenna, tower or other communication facility
- an automatic weather station
- a public recreation facility
- any other works carried out by or on behalf of the Crown.
This last point appears to be a fairly broad catch-all. Works carried out ‘on behalf of the Crown’ would include works carried out by a utility, statutory authority, etc, on behalf of the government.
Specified Public Works are either major or minor. These terms are defined by reference to inclusive lists of examples, which appear at What kind of activity is it?
Related information:
- definitions for Commercial and Community Purposes (above)
- Is the activity land clearing and other major works for commercial purposes? at What kind of activity is it?
- Infrastructure which has the effect of excluding or restricting public access at Does the LUAA apply to this land?
Traditional Owner rights
The Traditional Owner rights protected by the LUAA (and by the broader Recognition and Settlement Agreement) are:
- the enjoyment of the culture and identity of the traditional owner group
- the maintenance of a distinctive spiritual, material and economic relationship with the land and the natural resources on or depending on the land
- the ability to access and remain on the land
- the ability to camp on the land
- the ability to use and enjoy the land
- the ability to take natural resources on or depending on the land
- the ability to conduct cultural and spiritual activities on the land
- the protection of places and areas of importance on the land.
Related information: WJJWJ Land Use Activity Agreement guidance (overview)
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