Environmental Protection Law

This short course is for legal practitioners and other professionals interested in the environmental protection regulatory framework in Western Australia, in its national and international contexts.

The course will explore six themes:

Key definitions, institutions and objectives of Environmental Protection Law;

The policy instruments and information tools that underpin environmental protection;

Regulatory controls on particular activities causing pollution and environmental harm;

Environmental Impact Assessment at the State and Federal level;

Criminal liabilities under the WA and Federal legislation; and

Civil liabilities under the WA and Federal legislation and at common law.

Alex Gardner, Professor of Law is the lead presenter & short course coordinator.

In 2024, the course will be conducted with a combination of on-line pre-recorded lectures and readings available from 29 July, and interactive face-2-face sessions in the period 27-29 August, featuring presentations by guest experts. This year, we will give special attention to the increasing regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, implementation of existing and proposed reforms to the Environmental Protection Act 1986 (WA) and to proposed reforms to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth).

Attendance at each session of this short course entitles a practitioner to earn legal CPD points. Points can be selected from Competency Area 3 (1 point available) and Competency Area 4 (11 points available) depending on the sessions they attend.

The CPD rules differ for jurisdictions outside Western Australia and if you are outside Western Australia, we recommend that you check with your local relevant authority whether you can claim any CPD points.


We invite registered charities to inquire about the discounted registration rates. Please contact executiveeducation-slaw@uwa.edu.au for further information.