Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service has recently published the West Coast Off-Road Vehicle Strategy (the Strategy). The Strategy aims to encourage four-wheel driving on the West Coast of Tasmania, including over the Arthur Pieman Conservation Area and the Western Tasmania Aboriginal Cultural Landscape, listed by the Commonwealth Government in 2013 under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) (EPBC Act) as a National Heritage Place because of the significance of its Aboriginal cultural heritage values.

The EDO has reviewed the Strategy. We consider that the Strategy and the actions proposed in it are “controlled actions” under the EPBC Act which should be referred to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Water for approval. We have drafted a Briefing Note to help the community to understand why.

You can read the Briefing Note below: