Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

Parliament of Australia
Long title An Act relating to the protection of the environment and the conservation of biodiversity, and for related purposes
Citation	No. 91 of 1999 or No. 91, 1999 as amended
Territorial extent	States and territories of Australia
Enacted by	Parliament of Australia
Enacted	16 July 2000
Royal assent	16 July 1999
Commenced	16 July 2000
Administered by	Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment
Legislative history
Introduced by	Bill Heffernan, Ian Campbell
First reading	31 March 1999[1]
Second reading	31 March 1999[2]
Status: In force

Part of a series on
Wildlife of Australia
Biodiversity Flora, Fauna, and Fungi Grasses Trees Wildflowers Molluscs Ants Odonates Butterflies Cicadas Moths Spiders Fish Amphibians Reptiles Birds Mammals Endangered species flora fauna Threatened fauna
Conservation Protected areas National parks Game reserves Wildlife sanctuaries Ramsar wetland sites
Organisations National International AZA CITES IUCN WAZA WAP WWF Associated acts Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
Related topics Conservation Bush regeneration Ecoregions Forestry Fishing Agriculture Tourism Botanical and Zoological gardens Environmental issues
v t e

The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and culturally significant places. Enacted on 17 July 2000, it established a range of processes to help protect and promote the recovery of threatened species and ecological communities, and preserve significant places from decline. The Act is as of June 2020^[update] administered by the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. Lists of threatened species are drawn up under the Act, and these lists, the primary reference to threatened species in Australia, are available online through the Species Profile and Threats Database (SPRAT).

As an Act of the Australian Parliament, it relies for its constitutional validity upon the legislative powers of the Parliament granted by the Australian Constitution, and key provisions of the Act are largely based on a number of international, multilateral or bilateral treaties. A number of reviews, audits and assessments of the Act have found the Act deeply flawed and thus not providing adequate environmental protection.