The State Development and Public Works Organisation Act 1971 provides the Coordinator-General the power to declare a project to be a 'significant project', based on one or more of the following criteria:

• complex approval requirements, including local, state and federal Government involvement
• a high level of investment in the state
• potential effects on infrastructure and/or the environment
• provision of substantial employment opportunities
• strategic significance to a locality, region or the state.

Once a project is declared significant, an environmental impact statement (EIS) is usually required to ensure the project's environmental, social and economic impacts are appropriately considered.

Environmental impact statement diagram ( 28 KB)

• Fact sheet - submitting comments on a draft terms of reference ( 78 KB)
• Fact sheet - submitting comments on an environmental impact statement ( 83 KB)

Project proponents pay fees to the Coordinator-General for managing the EIS process.

More information on specific significant projects can be found in the projects section.

Declarations of significant projects

There are two types of declaration of a 'significant project' under the Act:

1. Requiring an environmental impact statement under s26(1)(a) of the Act

Project’s declared as significant are generally the most important or complex.  Declaration of a project as significant does not mean Queensland Government backing. Rather, it signals that the project warrants an environmental impact statement.

During the Environmental Impact Statement process for a significant project, the Integrated Development Assessment System (IDAS) process will be suspended until the Coordinator-General's evaluation report is completed and sent to the assessment manager.

2. Not requiring an environmental impact statement under s26(1)(b) of the Act

A project can be declared significant but not requiring an environmental impact statement. This recognises the significant nature of the project to either the region or the state. Applications under other statutes, such as the Water Act 2000 and the Vegetation Management Act 1999 require a project to be of a significant nature before detailed consideration can be made.

The provisions in the Act relating to the preparation of the Coordinator-General's report and its relationship to an Integrated Development Assessment System application will not be applicable to these projects.

Declaration of a significant project for which an environmental impact statement is not required does not diminish the requirement for a proponent to undertake environmental assessment under other legislation. The Coordinator-General must be satisfied that appropriate environmental assessments will be carried out for the project under another Act prior to declaring a project significant pursuant to s26(1)(b).

The Australian Government also has a Major Project Facilitation Program administered by the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.