Public Environmental Report
Once the proponent receives a copy of the final Guidelines and a direction from the Minister for Natural Resources, Environment and Heritage to prepare a Public Environmental Report (PER), the proponent prepares the PER. There is no statutory timeframe in which the proponent is to prepare the PER unless specified by the Minister.
Once the PER has been prepared it undergoes a maximum public review period of 28 days. During this time, the PER is also circulated to various government advisory bodies for comment in their area of expertise. Invitation for public comment is advertised by the proponent in various media, and copies of the PER are placed on display at NT libraries and other suitable locations as well as this website. The proponent also makes copies available for sale.
At the close of the public review period, the Minister has 14 days in which to make a determination about the proposal. This decision is based upon the contents of the PER, issues raised in any comments received and advice from the various advisory bodies. The Minister’s determination is included in the Assessment Report which also includes any suggestions or recommendations concerning conditions which should apply to the proposal in order to minimise potential environmental impacts and to protect the environment. The Assessment Report is forwarded to the approving Minister for consideration (that is, the Minister responsible for approving the proposal).
The Assessment Report is publicly available through the web site. All Assessment Reports are available to the public as a hard copy at the Environment, Heritage and the Arts Division.
