Pastoral Lands Board

Under Section 95 of the Land Administration Act 1997  (the Act), the functions of the Pastoral Lands Board (PLB) are to:

• advise the Minister on policy relating to the pastoral industry and the administration of pastoral leases
• administer pastoral leases in accordance with Part 7 of the Act
• ensure pastoral leases are managed on an ecologically sustainable basis
• develop policies to prevent the degradation of rangelands
• develop policies to rehabilitate degraded or eroded rangelands and to restore their pastoral potential
• consider applications for the subdivision of pastoral land and make recommendations to the Minister in relation to them
• establish and evaluate a system of pastoral land monitoring sites
• monitor the numbers and the effect of stock and feral animals on pastoral land
• conduct or commission research into any matters that it considers are relevant to the pastoral industry
• provide any other assistance or advice that the Minister may require in relation to the administration of Part 7 of the Act
• exercise or perform such other functions as may be given under the Act or any other Act.

The PLB consists of a chairperson appointed by the Minister and seven members including:

• three members who hold or have held an interest in a pastoral lease or are or have been shareholders in a company with a beneficial interest in a pastoral lease (pastoral interest members)
• one member with expertise in the field of flora, fauna or land conservation management (conservation interest member)
• one Aboriginal member with experience in pastoral leases (Aboriginal interest member)
• the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage
• the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.

The Chairperson is the lead member and uses their experience, skills and leadership abilities to effectively lead the PLB and its governance processes, based on a good understanding of the public sector environment.

The PLB may invite organisations or individuals to present their views or expertise on specific matters to assist the PLB in its deliberations.

Board members portal

At the request of the Minister for Lands the PLB has recently concluded a series of consultation workshops. Information gathered from the pastoral industry during these workshops has informed the PLB's advice to the Ministers for Lands and Agriculture in the paper Priorities for Strengthening the Economic Viability and Ecological Management of the Pastoral Estate. 

The recommendations made by the PLB include:

• creating a strategic vision for the pastoral industry
• improving security of land tenure for pastoralists
• introducing a risk based approach to assessing applications for diversified economic activity on pastoral leases
• introducing a new optional lease type which would enable more diverse activity on pastoral leases
• developing a land condition monitoring system that assists the State Government as land owner and pastoralists as land managers, to acquit their respective responsibilities
• developing a program to assist Aboriginal pastoralists to better realise opportunities for economic, environmental and social benefits.

2018 to 2020 meetings

Contact the Pastoral Lands Board by email:

General contact

Media enquiries

Leases, subleases, transfers, diversification permits