Western Australian Consolidated Acts Western Australian Consolidated Acts (1) The Commonwealth
and the States have agreed that —
(a)
Commonwealth offshore mining legislation should be limited to the area that is
outside State coastal waters; and
(b) the
States should share, in the manner provided by the Offshore Minerals
Act 1994 of the Commonwealth, in the administration of the Commonwealth
offshore mining legislation; and
(c)
State offshore mining legislation should apply to State coastal waters beyond
the baseline for the territorial sea (that is, the first 3 nautical miles of
the territorial sea); and
(d) the
Commonwealth and the States should try to maintain, as far as practicable,
common principles, rules and practices in regulating and controlling offshore
mining beyond the baseline of Australia’s territorial sea.
Note 1: So far as the agreement relates to
petroleum, it is reflected in this State’s legislation by the Petroleum
(Submerged Lands) Act 1982 .
Note 2: Some sections of the Commonwealth Act
contain provisions that are not relevant to the operation of this Act. To keep
uniformity between this Act and the Commonwealth Act the numbers of the
sections that are not relevant up to section 423 have not been used in
the numbering of this Act. A section of this Act and the corresponding section
of the Commonwealth Act up to section 423 will therefore have the same
number. From section 424 onwards the two Acts differ significantly and
uniformity of numbering has not been maintained.
(2) Other Acts that
provide background in this State to the agreement (commonly referred to as the
“Offshore Constitutional Settlement”) are —
(a) the
Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973 , the Coastal Waters (State Powers)
Act 1980 , the Coastal Waters (State Title) Act 1980 and the
Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1967 of the Commonwealth; and
(b) the
Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982 of this State.
Note 1: The Seas and Submerged Lands
Act 1973 —
• declares and enacts that the sovereignty
in respect of the territorial sea and the associated airspace, seabed and
subsoil is vested in and exercisable by the Crown in right of the
Commonwealth;
• gives the Governor-General power to
declare, by Proclamation, the limits of the territorial sea;
• declares and enacts that the sovereignty
in respect of waters of the sea that are on the landward side of the baseline
of the territorial sea (but not within the limits of a State) and in respect
of the associated airspace, seabed and subsoil is vested in and exercisable by
the Crown in right of the Commonwealth;
• declares and enacts that the sovereign
rights of Australia as a coastal State in respect of the Continental Shelf of
Australia (for the purpose of exploring it and exploiting its natural
resources) are vested in and exercisable by the Crown in right of the
Commonwealth;
• gives the Governor-General power to
declare, by Proclamation, the limits of the Continental Shelf of Australia.
Note 2: The Coastal Waters (State Powers)
Act 1980 was enacted following a request from the Parliaments of all the
States under paragraph 51(xxxviii) of the Constitution of the Commonwealth and
provides that the legislative powers exercisable under the Constitution of
each State extend to the making of certain laws that would operate offshore.
Note 3: The Coastal Waters (State Title)
Act 1980 vests in each State certain property rights in the seabed
beneath the coastal waters of the State.
Note 4: The Petroleum (Submerged Lands)
Act 1967 of the Commonwealth and the Petroleum (Submerged Lands)
Act 1982 of this State make provision, based on the agreement referred to
in subsection (1), for the licensing regime that applies to the
exploration for and recovery of petroleum in coastal waters and offshore areas
of this State.