Legislation to establish Environment Protection Australia is before the Senate.

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Voters have long been told the independent umpire for nature – rather than the environment minister – would have primary responsibility for deciding if developments proceeded or not.

But the prime minister now says he’s open to scrapping the new body’s decision-making powers amid talks with the Coalition, in order to get it across the line this term.

“One of the things that we’re considering is whether the new EPA would be compliance-only, that is, (it) would examine compliance with the act, the EPBC act,” Anthony Albanese has told The West Australian.

Conservation groups are horrified, having praised those powers as a way to remove the risk of political interference from nature protection.

But Professor Graeme Samuel, who led a sweeping review that found existing environmental laws are not fit for purpose, is not concerned.

He told AAP it did not much matter who made such decisions.

The crucial thing was that they stick to new national standards that will articulate, in detail, what the environmental outcomes must be.

WWF-Australia fears any such change will leave Australia with a weak watchdog at a time of unprecedented environmental decline.

“It’s heartbreaking to hear the government talk about gutting the EPA that has been at the heart of its reforms,” said Quinton Clements, the group’s head of policy.

“Without this, the government will have failed to put in place meaningful reform and will have missed a once-in-a-decade chance to reverse our extinction crisis.”

The Australian Conservation Foundation said the government should be working with Senate crossbenchers to ensure the nation did not end up with a dud.

“A strong, independent and well-resourced regulator is critical for Australia to move beyond the situation where vested interests influence decision-making, undermining nature protection,” says nature policy adviser Brendan Sydes.

Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek said the changes were about achieving a situation that was good for business, as well as nature.

Talks are ongoing with the Coalition, the Greens and other crossbenchers, she said, but opposition environment spokesman Jonathan Duniam is claiming a win.

“The Coalition has proposed a very wide-ranging series of amendments to the government’s three EPA-related Bills to better protect the environment and to make it easier to do business in Australia,” he said.

“That included a request that the government honour its clear 2022 election promise that its EPA would serve purely as a data and compliance body, rather than unaccountably be handed a series of far-reaching powers.

“We are glad that the government has now agreed to that.”

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young accused the government of lacking courage and said it could expect some heat when parliament resumed.

By Tracey FERRIER