The EPA has utilised Administrative Procedures since at least 1993 as a means of describing the procedures used for dealing with referrals and assessments covered by Part IV of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (EP Act). Since 2002, these have been published in the government gazette.
Since 2016, the Administrative Procedures have been supported by a Procedures Manual, which provides additional details for proponents, public, and staff of the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation on each stage of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) process.
Following extensive reviews and consultation throughout 2023 and 2024, the EPA determined that the most effective approach to implementing identified improvements was through the development of a consolidated guide to outline the practice of EIA. This consolidated document is the Environmental Impact Assessment Practice Guide Assessment of Proposals in Western Australia under Part IV of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (the Practice Guide).
As of 1 January 2026, the EIA Practice Guide replaced the existing Administrative Procedures and Procedures Manual. The EPA have published Transitional Arrangements to outline how the EIA process will change based on the different stages of the EIA process; these can be found on the Practice Guide page linked above.
To aid in the transition to the new EIA Practice Guide, the previous version of the Administrative Procedures and Procedures Manual are available on the link below.
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