Biodiversity offsets failed to protect habitat in NSW. Now federal Labor is about to make the same mistakes, critics warn

Critics warn that the federal government may repeat past mistakes made in New South Wales (NSW) regarding biodiversity offsets. These offsets, intended as a last resort for mitigating environmental damage from development projects, have become the default approach. Scientists and legal experts express concern over proposals to change how developers compensate for environmental harm, highlighting the failure of previous offset strategies in protecting habitats in NSW.