Conservation Council of WA Inc v CEO, Department of Water and Environmental Regulation

COURT OR TRIBUNAL

Supreme Court of Western Australia

DATE FILED (OR FIRST HEARING DATE)

25/11/2021

LITIGATION TYPE

Project Approval - Mitigation

SUBJECT MATTER

Gas and Oil

REVIEW TYPE

Judicial review

SUMMARY

The applicant launched a second legal action challenging the Western Australian government's decision to approve works relating to an expansion of Woodside’s Pluto LNG facility (a key component of the Scarborough gas proposal). The applicants will argue that the existing works approval for expansion of the Pluto facility that was issued by the CEO of the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) was unlawful. This is because it failed to properly consider and control the environmental harm caused by greenhouse gas emissions from the development. The first interlocutory judgment was handed down in June 2022.

JUDICIAL REVIEW — Practice and procedure — Application for leave to adduce expert evidence — Whether expert evidence regarding greenhouse gas emissions should be permitted — Whether expert evidence relevant to grounds of review — Turns on own facts. JUDICIAL REVIEW — Practice and procedure — Application for leave to amend further and better particulars — Turns on own facts.

CASE DOCUMENTS

Conservation Council of Western Australia v Western Australia
Conservation Council of WA Inc v Ceo, Department of Water and Environmental Regulation [2022] WASC 202