‘Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment’
Leveraging Digital
Information to Streamline EnvironmentalAssessment
Chris Gentle, December 9th 2020

T H E

W E S T E R N

A U S T R A L I A N

B I O D I V E R S I T Y

S C I E N C E

I N S T I T U T E

Background >> WABSI Pathways Documentation (2012 – 2014)
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

1.

‘A great deal of information on the State’s biodiversity has been collected and interpreted by research
agencies and industry. However, the existing knowledge base is fragmented and difficult to access. All
stakeholders agree that an enhanced information base, which can be readily accessed and easily interpreted
by decision-makers, will improve decision-making’2.

‘The issues associated with biodiversity information management will not be resolved quickly or easily. A
concerted and disciplined approach over several years is required across government, industry and research
agencies to ensure that information is made accessible by establishing clear policy frameworks andinvesting in the supporting infrastructure and information technology that is required’Vision >> Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

1.

Our focus since 2017 has been to progress our “Understanding of the cumulative impacts, of an action, on a region over time” while“streamlining environmental assessment and approvals” – or by 2025 how can we halve the time it takes to undertake an assessment?

2.

This requires high volumes of quality data that can be shared, a place to put it, work-flow tools to enable process efficiencies andanalytic tools for decision support

3.

That can be leveraged by State and Commonwealth regulators, proponents and the community, which will:

4.

Improve the efficiency for environmental assessments from project inception to final decision, for both the proponent and regulator

5.

Improve the confidence of the regulator that they have made the correct decision at both the project level and at a landscapecumulative impact scale

6.

Improve public trust in EIA decisions through transparency and visibility of data and methods underpinning decisions

7.

Provide assurance that commitments to Ministerial conditions are proceeding as planned through continuous monitoring andassessment

Vision >> Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

1. Current process
2. Three disruptions – Data, Digital and Decision Support
3. Three objectives – Robust, Repeatable and Sustainable

What has been achieved >> Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

1. Index of Biodiversity Surveys for Assessments (implemented 2018, 500 surveys ~ AU$40m annually)
2. Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment Case (completed 2019, ~$150m NPV benefit annually)
3. Index of Marine Surveys for Assessments (implemented 2020, 50 surveys ~ AU$50m annually)
4. Biodiversity Information Office (under way 2020 – 23, ~ AU$10m)
5. Environment Online / Digital Environmental Assessment Program (under way 2020 -2022, ~ AU$50m)
6. >> Shared Analytic Framework for the Environment (concept development SAFE)

How? Culture Challenge >> GBIO - Framework
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE•‘The framework described here is organized into four focus areas, each of which is broken down
into several core components. All four interconnect and strengthen each other; all four areneeded if biodiversity informatics is to achieve its full potential. Each focus area – and theindividual components within them – can be progressed independently but as they develop theyshould start to feed into and reinforce each other, making them together far greater than thesum of their parts.

• At the root lies the culture focus area which puts in place thenecessary elements to turn biodiversity information into acommon and connected resource – stable and persistentstorage, pooled expertise, the culture and policies to support
sharing, and common data standards.
•Building on those foundations, the data focus area aims to accelerate the mobilization of datafrom all sources, unlocking the knowledge held in our collections and literature, improving data
quality and filling in gaps, and bringing observations and data from all sources from satellites togenomes online.

•The evidence focus area deals with refining, structuring and evaluating the data, to improve
quality and place it within a taxonomic framework that organizes all known information about
any species.

•Finally, the understanding focus area enables a broader synthesis, providing the modelling tools
to enable us to look at whole ecosystems, make better policy decisions and react to any changes’

Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority 2019 – 2022 Strategic Plan

1

2

Improving the assessment andmanagement of cumulative impacts

Being innovative in environmental
information and digital EIA

We will accomplish this by:

We will accomplish this by:

X

Identifying best practice approaches tothe assessment and management ofcumulative impacts with a focus on:X- landscape scale and regional
assessments- mechanisms for flexibility andconditioning.
X Taking a strategic approach targeted
to areas identified as having existingor future high cumulative impacts.
For example:- Burrup airquality

Improving the soundness, robustness
and transparency of advice throughour assessments

We will accomplish this by:

We will accomplish this by:X- sharing advances in information
systems and analytics with otherjurisdictions.
X- Pilbara coast- South West nativeforests.

- widely and effectively
communicating benefits of thisdata to stakeholders.

XX

Collaborating with researchorganisations to develop new
analytics to inform cumulative
impact assessment.

X

Promoting regular reporting on thecondition of the state’senvironment.

Prioritising engagement withenvironmental policies and plansincluding- climate changeX- native vegetation management- biodiversity offsets- waste minimisation- water resource management- land use planning.
X Articulating strong and effective
environmental protection needsand
opportunities.
XX

X

Informing and promoting EIA innovation
through the State’s streamlining initiative.

X

Collaborating with industry, consultants,
non-government organisations and thebroader community through:- identifying where the EIA process canbe improved

Responding to strategic environmental
implications of changing external
policies through the prompt review
of EPA guidelines and procedures torecognise the changing externalpolicy environment.
Showing public leadership in
policy matters of significance toenvironmental protection.

Being a leader in EIA innovation through- keeping up to date with advancesin impact assessment frameworks
and techniques- actively collaborating with otherjurisdictions in Australia andinternationally- trialling of new processes.

- mining rehabilitation

Championing the capture, curation,and public availabilityof
environmental data, including:- broadening the scope of data
capture beyond terrestrial
biodiversity survey data

4

Actively advising on the development ofeffective state environmental policies
and plans- supporting digital environmental
information innovation- Cockburn Sound

Developing and publishing process
methodology for cumulative impact
assessment and management.
X Advancing the proposition forbest practice cumulative impact
assessment and managementunder
the Environmental Protection Act 1986.

Showing continuing leadership withgovernment in digital innovation,
including:3- reviewing the trial of new approaches
to EIA- investigating the potential andmechanisms for EIAaccreditation- continuing to review and develop
environmental guidance.
X

Bringing to the public’s attention
significant findings and primary scienceon the environment.

Digitally Transforming Environmental Assessment – MEM – 8th November 2019
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

November 8th COAG Meeting of the Environment Ministers (MEM) was held. At the meeting WA and the Commonwealth requested that COAG
MEM:
1.Note the work in Western Australia and the Commonwealth on digital reform of environmental assessments and approvals, including WesternAustralia’s Digitally Transforming Environment Assessments report and the Environment online paper;
2.Recommend to Ministers they encourage participation in detailed scoping work that Western Australia and the Commonwealth will progress topursue the aims of better regulation and digital transformation with specific reference to:a.

Exploring joint ways to capture, curate, store and share biodiversity and other environmental data relevant to assessments
approvals; andb.

Better aligning and streamlining environmental assessment and approval systems throughout the full assessment life cycle.

The formal MEM Statement is here: https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/4f59b654-53aa-43df-b9d1-b21f9caa500c/files/mem9-agreed-statement.pdf“Digital Transformation of Environmental Assessments
Ministers agreed to work together to digitally transform environmental assessment systems, providing greater access to shared environmental
data, less duplication and greater transparency. Delays within the current system are a costly frustration to both proponents and environmentalgroups and have already been identified as a key area to address within the review of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation
Act under Professor Graeme Samuel.“Prime Minister Morrison, Business Council of Australia, November 21st 2019
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

1.

Now the third area of our regulatory congestion busting agenda is getting major projects off the ground sooner.

2.

Again, we have taken on board what businesses have been telling us.

3.

Environmental approval processes for major projects are overly complex, duplicative and they take too long.

4.

As in other areas, digital technology gives us the opportunity to make these processes faster and simpler.

5.

Our Government is taking the first step towards a nationally consistent digital environmental assessment and approvals regime.

6.

We will partner with the Western Australian Government to develop a system that will reduce approvals times, allow project
proponents to submit a single application via a single online portal, track its progress and access a database of biodiversity
studies relevant to their project.

7.

I want to recognise the role companies such as BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue have played in the development of the biodiversity
database.

8.

It takes approximately three and a half years for a complex major project to navigate the State and Commonwealthenvironmental assessment process. It's estimated that this timeframe could be reduced by between 6 and 18 months throughthe better use of technology.

9. So that’s what we’re going to do.
https://www.pm.gov.au/media/speech-business-council-australia-annual-dinnerShifting from local to regional thinking (Pilbara ~= Land Area as Spain)
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

Commercial in Confidence

2015 Pilbara operations
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

BHP BILLITON MINESOTHER OPERATORSCommercial in Confidence

Slide 11

Planned development in the Pilbara
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE

BHP BILLITON MINESOTHER OPERATORS

Commercial in Confidence

Slide 12

In 2018 this is specialist task. What if in 2023 it wasn’t? >> SAFE
THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY SCIENCE INSTITUTE“The spatial bias resulted in high confidence in model outputs surrounding BHPBIO’s mining tenements, but lessconfidence in predictions in distinct environments with limited survey coverage.”