(1) For the purposes of this section, the expression }the owner of any land~ includes a lessee from the Crown, and the holder of any mining tenement or mining privilege, or of any right or privilege under the Petroleum Act 1967, in relation to the land.

(1a) A person is also included as an owner of land for the purposes of this section if ¾

(a) the person ¾

(i) is the holder of rights conferred under section 34 of the Dampier to Bunbury Pipeline Act 1997 in respect of the land or is the holder's nominee approved under section 34(3) of that Act; or

(ii) has authority under section 7 of the Petroleum Pipelines Act 1969 to enter upon the land;

or

(b) the person is the holder of a distribution licence under Part 2A of the Energy Coordination Act 1994 as a result of which the person has rights or powers in respect of the land.

(2) Where the owner of any land gives to the Committee notice in writing that he requires to use the land for a purpose which, unless the Minister gives his consent under this section, would be likely to result in a breach of section 17 in respect of any Aboriginal site that might be on the land, the Committee shall, as soon as it is reasonably able, form an opinion as to whether there is any Aboriginal site on the land, evaluate the importance and significance of any such site, and submit the notice to the Minister together with its recommendation in writing as to whether or not the Minister should consent to the use of the land for that purpose, and, where applicable, the extent to which and the conditions upon which his consent should be given.

(3) Where the Committee submits a notice to the Minister under subsection (2) he shall consider its recommendation and having regard to the general interest of the community shall either ¾

(a) consent to the use of the land the subject of the notice, or a specified part of the land, for the purpose required, subject to such conditions, if any, as he may specify; or

(b) wholly decline to consent to the use of the land the subject of the notice for the purpose required,

and shall forthwith inform the owner in writing of his decision.

(4) Where the owner of any land has given to the Committee notice pursuant to subsection (2) and the Committee has not submitted it with its recommendation to the Minister in accordance with that subsection the Minister may require the Committee to do so within a specified time, or may require the Committee to take such other action as the Minister considers necessary in order to expedite the matter, and the Committee shall comply with any such requirement.

(5) Where the owner of any land is aggrieved by a decision of the Minister made under subsection (3) he may, within the time and in the manner prescribed by rules of court, appeal from the decision of the Minister to the Supreme Court which may hear and determine the appeal.

(6) In determining an appeal under subsection (5) the Judge hearing the appeal may confirm or vary the decision of the Minister against which the appeal is made or quash the decision and substitute his own decision which shall have effect as if it were the decision of the Minister, and may make such order as to the costs of the appeal as he sees fit.

(7) Where the owner of any land gives notice to the Committee under subsection (2), the Committee may, if it is satisfied that it is practicable to do so, direct the removal of any object to which this Act applies from the land to a place of safe custody.

(8) Where consent has been given under this section to a person to use any land for a particular purpose nothing done by or on behalf of that person pursuant to, and in accordance with any conditions attached to, the consent constitutes an offence against this Act.

[Section 18 inserted by No. 8 of 1980 s. 6; amended by No. 24 of 1995 s. 19 ^2; No. 58 of 1999 s. 39.]