Combine or amalgamate environmental authorities

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 Regional 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).

1. Amalgamated corporate authority.
2. Amalgamated project authority.
3. 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, 269KB) 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, please 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 amalgamated corporate authority application (ESR/2015/1734) (DOC, 339KB) 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 be accompanied by an application to change the anniversary day for each of the existing environmental authorities to a new day that is the same for all of the authorities. 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. For help calculating the adjustment amount, use the fee calculator (ESR/2015/1731) (XLSX, 74KB).

If you also wish to change some of the conditions of one 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 one 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 amalgamated project or local government authority – application to amalgamate 2 or more environmental authorities (ESR/2015/1735) (DOC, 178KB) form 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 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 (ESR/2015/1732) (DOCX, 170KB) 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 amalgamated project or local government authority - application to amalgamate 2 or more environmental authorities 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 (ESR/2015/1732) (DOCX, 170KB) 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.