Blue Carbon Wetland Restoration: An overview of environment and planning laws in NSW and QLD

Benefits of Blue Carbon Wetlands

Blue carbon wetlands are exceptionally effective at sequestering atmospheric carbon, making them an overlooked but essential part of the fight against climate change.[1] In addition, wetlands provide essential habitat for a range of species (including endangered species and migratory birds that are protected under international law) and act as nurseries for fish and sharks.[2]

The so-called ‘ecosystem services’ offered by blue carbon wetlands are very important to Australians’ health, safety and prosperity. Studies have calculated the value of coastal wetlands to the Australian economy in the billions of dollars.[3] For example, wetlands directly benefit people by protecting coastlines from storm surge events,[4] improving estuarine and marine water quality[5] and supporting commercial fisheries and oyster farms.[6] They are also highly significant to many Aboriginal peoples.[7]

Past Harm to Wetlands & Need to Restore

Since colonisation, a large percentage of Australia’s coastal blue carbon wetlands, particularly on the east coast of the continent, have been cleared and drained to facilitate urban development and agriculture.[8] This is part of a broader global trend, with a recent study suggesting that at least one fifth of the world’s wetlands have been lost since 1700. In some countries, this figure is significantly higher.[9]

Clearing and draining wetlands causes severe environmental, social, economic and cultural harm, worsens habitat loss and exacerbates the climate and biodiversity crises. Reintroducing the natural tide to a drained wetland can reverse these harms by stimulating plant growth and returning a wetland to its historic natural state. Proof of concept for this ‘tidal reintroduction method’ has been demonstrated across multiple sites and thousands of hectares in New South Wales.[10]

Legal Frameworks

Laws that have been specifically developed to facilitate and regulate nature restoration work are unfortunately quite rare. Environment and planning laws designed to regulate development projects that are likely have a negative impact on the environment can invertedly also capture certain forms of nature restoration work. In Australia, nature restoration projects in the coastal zone or near waterways are liable to trigger a range of provisions across environmental law and planning law statutes, each of which are administered by different government agencies.

The location, land tenure and nature of works undertaken for a blue carbon restoration project will determine the suite of applicable environment and planning laws in any given jurisdiction. For example, a restoration project that cuts across land with several forms of tenure in place (such as Crown land, privately owned land and native title land) will inevitably be more legally complicated.

Applicable State Environment and Planning Laws

New South Wales

In New South Wales, blue carbon restoration projects can enliven no fewer than ten overarching pieces of legislation, along with their associated delegated legislation and planning instruments. This includes the Fisheries Management Act 1994, Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 and Water Management Act 2000, to name just a few examples.

Four of the State Environmental Planning Policies (SEPPs) made under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 are particularly important, influencing whether a blue carbon project requires a development application and development consent, among other things.

Local Environment Plans (LEPs) administered by local councils also apply to nature restoration projects. LEPS divide Local Government Areas (LGAs) into planning zones and specify what is prohibited, permissible with consent and permissible without consent in each of those zones. They also include additional planning controls for certain forms of development or development on certain types of land. The particular rules that apply to a given project will depend on the specific LGA’s LEP.

Queensland

Similarly, in Queensland there are approximately ten overarching pieces of legislation that may apply to blue carbon wetland restoration projects, along with associated regulations and other related instruments. These included, for example, the Coastal Protection and Management Act 1995, Vegetation Management Act 1999, Nature Conservation Act 1992 and Water Act 2000.

The key place to start for Queensland law is the Planning Act 2016, which defines “acceptable” and “assessable” types of development. It is arguable that blue carbon restoration projects could fall into the acceptable category, primarily because they provide a net benefit to plant and animal species. However, there is some ambiguity in the law, which was not designed in anticipation of nature restoration work. Therefore, blue carbon nature restoration projects may be assessable.

Other relevant legislation prescribes certain surveys that must be carried out and permits that must be obtained (for example, if native vegetation will be damaged by the restoration project). Some of the legislation makes it an offence to carry out certain activities without the appropriate permits, so developers should be careful that they have ticked all of the necessary boxes for their projects.

Conclusion and Further Information

Overall, the environment and planning laws relating to blue carbon nature restoration projects in Australia are complex and multi-layered. If you are a landholder or organisation considering carrying out a restoration project, reach out to the Restore Blue legal advisory team for expert advice relevant to your particular circumstances. We would be happy to guide you through the necessary permits and processes.

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References

[1] Donato, D.C., Kauffman, J.B., Murdiyarso, D., Kurnianto, S., Stidham, M., and Kanninen, M., 2011. Mangroves among the most carbon-rich forests in the tropics. Nature Geoscience, 4, p.293-297, doi:10.1038/ngeo1123.

[2] WIRES. Wetlands and Biodiversity (2025).

[3] See eg Costanza, R., Anderson, S., Sutton, P., Mulder, K. P., Mulder, O., Kubiszewski, I., Wang, X., Liu, X., Perez-Maqueo, O., Martinez, M. L., Jarvis, D., & Dee, G. (2021). The global value of coastal wetlands for storm protection. Global Environmental Change 

[4] Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australia’s saltmarsh ecosystems provided protection to thousands. Media Release. (2022).

[5] Nelson, J.L., and Zavaleta, E.S., 2012. Salt Marsh as a Coastal Filter for the Oceans: Changes in Function with Experimental Increases in Nitrogen Loading and Sea-Level Rise. PLOS One, 7(8), doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038558

[6] Heimhuber, V, Raoult, V, Glamore, W, Taylor, M, Gaston, T. (2024). Restoring blue carbon ecosystems unlocks fisheries' potential. Restoration Ecology, Volume 31, Issue 1.

[7] Australian Government Department of the Environment. Wetlands and Indigenous Values. Fact Sheet. (2016).

[8] Creighton C, Gillies CL and McLeod IM (eds). (2015). Australia’s saltmarshes: a synopsis to underpin the repair and conservation of Australia’s environmental, social and economically important bays and estuaries. Centre for Tropical Water & Aquatic Ecosystem Research (TropWATER) Publication, James Cook University, Townsville, 63pp.

[9] Fluet-Chouinard, E., Stocker, B.D., Zhang, Z. et al. Extensive global wetland loss over the past three centuries. Nature 614, 281–286 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05572-6.

[10] See for example: Tomago Wetlands restoration project; Yarrahapinni Wetland restoration project; Big Swamp restoration project.