Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003

 

Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003

Contents

Part 1 — Preliminary

1.Short title2

2.Commencement2

3.Definitions2

4.Application of Act3

Part 2 — Tree plantation agreements

5.Entering into agreements4

6.Contents and formalities of agreements4

Part 3 — Registered tree plantation agreements

7.Interest in land (plantation interest) created on registration of agreement6

8.Dealings in plantation interests6

9.Obligations etc. under registered agreements run with the land7

10.Plantation interests: other legal effects7

11.Registration of surrender of plantation interests: effect7

Part 4 — Miscellaneous

12.No contracting out8

13.Regulations8

Notes

Compilation table9

 

Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003

An Act to provide for the making and effect of certain agreements, and for the creation and effect of certain interests in land, in relation to tree plantations, and for related matters.

Part 1 — Preliminary

1.Short title

This Act may be cited as the Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003.

2.Commencement

This Act comes into operation on the day on which the Carbon Rights Act 2003 comes into operation.

3.Definitions

In this Act —

agreement means an agreement that complies with section 6(1);

agreement land, in relation to an agreement, means the land (including a leasehold interest) that is described under section 6(1)(e) as the subject of the agreement and, where relevant, identified under section 6(1)(f);

Crown land has the same meaning as it has in the Land Administration Act 1997;

owner, in relation to freehold land, means a person whose name is registered as a proprietor of the freehold land;

plantation means one or more groups of planted trees;

plantation interest means the interest in land referred to in section 7(1)(a);

product, in relation to a tree in a plantation, includes the whole tree, a part of the tree or a thing produced by the tree whether or not the part of the tree or the thing produced by the tree is above or below the ground or has become separated from the tree before being harvested;

registered —

(a)in relation to land that is under the operation of the Transfer of Land Act 1893, means registered under that Act; and

(b)in relation to land that is subject to the Registration of Deeds Act 1856, means registered under that Act;

Registrar —

(a)in relation to land that is under the operation of the Transfer of Land Act 1893, means the Registrar of Titles; and

(b)in relation to land that is subject to the Registration of Deeds Act 1856, means the Registrar of Deeds and Transfers;

tree means a perennial plant having one or more woody, self‑supporting trunks and includes a tree seedling and a sapling.

[Section 3 amended: No. 47 of 2011 s. 16.]

4.Application of Act

(1)This Act does not apply in relation to the management, harvesting or sale of forest products as defined by the Forest Products Act 2000 on public land as defined by that Act, except to the extent to which section 5 provides.

(2)Nothing in this Act —

(a)is to be read as giving the Forest Products Commission or the CALM Act CEO the power to enter into an agreement under this Act; or

(b)affects the respective powers that the Forest Products Commission or the CALM Act CEO has in relation to a timber sharefarming agreement as defined in the Forest Products Act 2000 or the Conservation and Land Management Act 1984.

(3)In this section —

CALM Act CEO has the meaning given to “CEO” by section 3 of the Conservation and Land Management Act 1984.

[Section 4 amended: No. 28 of 2006 s. 29.]

Part 2 — Tree plantation agreements

5.Entering into agreements

(1)An owner of freehold land, a lessee of freehold land or a lessee of Crown land may enter into an agreement with another person by which that person agrees to do one or more of the following things on the land —

(a)establish a plantation;

(b)maintain a plantation;

(c)harvest products from a plantation.

(2)An agreement may be made in relation to the matters referred to in subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) even if the plantation does not exist at the time the agreement is made.

(3)Nothing in subsection (1) affects the operation of section 106 or 109 of the Land Administration Act 1997.

6.Contents and formalities of agreements

(1)An agreement must —

(a)be in writing;

(b)state that it is an agreement under this Act;

(c)provide for a thing referred to in section 5(1) to be done;

(d)specify —

(i)the day on which the agreement commences; and

(ii)the term of the agreement;

(e)contain the land description for the freehold land, leasehold interest or Crown land that is the subject of the agreement; and

(f)identify, if the agreement is to be in respect of part only of the land referred to in paragraph (e), by way of words or a sketch, the part of the land that is the subject of the agreement.

(2)Subject to subsection (1), an agreement may contain any provisions the parties agree to include.

(3)An agreement entered into by a lessee of Crown land is of no effect unless section 18 of the Land Administration Act 1997 has been complied with.

(4)If a right of exclusive possession is conferred under an agreement, the agreement is not to be treated as a lease.

(5)An agreement is not a lease or licence to use or occupy land or a subdivision of land to which section 135 or 136 of the Planning and Development Act 2005 applies.

[Section 6 amended: No. 38 of 2005 s. 15.]

Part 3 — Registered tree plantation agreements

7.Interest in land (plantation interest) created on registration of agreement

(1)When an agreement is registered —

(a)the property in the trees in a plantation that is the subject of the agreement becomes a separate interest, to be called a “plantation interest”, in the agreement land; and

(b)the proprietor of a plantation interest under the agreement is each person who is registered as a proprietor of that interest.

(2)Subsection (1)(a) applies even though the trees are affixed to the agreement land.

(3)A plantation interest is, in relation to the relevant agreement land —

(a)a hereditament; and

(b)an encumbrance.

Note for this section:

The definition of “land” in the Transfer of Land Act 1893 includes hereditaments in freehold and Crown land.

8.Dealings in plantation interests

(1)A plantation interest can be —

(a)dealt with as a separate interest in the relevant agreement land, except that it cannot be varied;

(b)the subject of a caveat or process of execution.

(2)The operation of subsection (1) in relation to land under the operation of the Transfer of Land Act 1893 is subject to —

(a)Part IV Division 2B of that Act; and

(b)any provision of that Act that applies by virtue of a plantation interest being —

(i)a separate interest in land;

(ii)land within the meaning of that Act;

(iii)an encumbrance; or

(iv)otherwise referred to in that Act.

9.Obligations etc. under registered agreements run with the land

The rights, obligations (including positive covenants) and restrictions that bind the owner or lessee of the agreement land under a registered agreement also burden, attach to, and run with, the agreement land, except to the extent that the agreement provides otherwise.

10. Plantation interests: other legal effects

(1)Without limiting section 6(4), a plantation interest does not confer any right of possession.

(2)A plantation interest is not a lease or licence to use or occupy land or a subdivision of land to which section 135 or 136 of the Planning and Development Act 2005 applies.

[Section 10 amended: No. 38 of 2005 s. 15.]

11.Registration of surrender of plantation interests: effect

(1)When a surrender of the whole of a plantation interest is registered, all rights, obligations and restrictions under the relevant agreement cease to have effect, except to the extent that the agreement provides otherwise.

(2)When a surrender of part of a plantation interest is registered, all rights, obligations and restrictions under the relevant agreement cease to have effect in respect of the surrendered part, except to the extent that the agreement provides otherwise.

Part 4 — Miscellaneous

12.No contracting out

The provisions of this Act apply despite anything to the contrary in an agreement.

13.Regulations

(1)The Governor may make regulations prescribing all matters that are required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed, or are necessary or convenient to be prescribed, for giving effect to this Act.

(2)Regulations made under this Act may provide that contravention of a regulation or a provision of a regulation constitutes an offence and provide for penalties not exceeding $5 000.

 

Notes

1This is a compilation of the Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003 and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table.

Compilation table

Short title

Number and Year

Assent

Commencement

Tree Plantation Agreements Act 2003

39 of 2003

30 Jun 2003

24 Mar 2004 (see s. 2 and Gazette 23 Mar 2004 p. 975)

Planning and Development (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2005 s. 15

38 of 2005

12 Dec 2005

9 Apr 2006 (see s. 2 and Gazette 21 Mar 2006 p. 1078)

Machinery of Government (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2006 Pt. 2 Div. 8

28 of 2006

26 Jun 2006

1 Jul 2006 (see s. 2 and Gazette 27 Jun 2006 p. 2347)

Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Act 2011 s. 16

47 of 2011

25 Oct 2011

26 Oct 2011 (see s. 2(b))

 

 

Defined terms

 

[This is a list of terms defined and the provisions where they are defined. The list is not part of the law.]

Defined termProvision(s)

agreement3

agreement land3

CALM Act CEO4(3)

Crown land3

owner3

plantation3

plantation interest3

product3

registered3

Registrar3

tree3