Major reforms to Australia's environment laws will not be split up despite demands from the opposition, with debate over the contentious changes set to dominate the week in parliament.
Environment Minister Murray Watt plans to introduce the overhaul into parliament on Thursday.
He has been negotiating with the coalition and the Greens to try and get the legislation through the Senate, where Labor doesn't have the numbers on its own.
The changes aim to better protect natural sites, while also speeding up approvals for major housing, energy and infrastructure projects, which the government says are currently bogged down in red tape.
But the opposition wants the bill split in two, so elements which are considered more pro-business can be dealt with first.
Liberal leader Sussan Ley and environment spokeswoman Angie Bell wrote to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday outlining their demands.
The two Liberal politicians said the reforms to streamline project approvals still needed some changes to make them fit for purpose.
But they said separating those policies from the more contentious elements of the bill would "allow parliament to make immediate progress on areas that can genuinely help unlock investment and growth."
"The coalition stands ready to achieve meaningful reform that protects the environment while removing unnecessary duplication and delay," they wrote.
The opposition has expressed concern about the parts of the bill aimed at strengthening environmental protections, claiming they could hurt businesses.
Under Senator Watt's proposal, a new National Environment Protection Agency would be tasked with enforcing Australia's environment laws.
The bill also includes larger penalties for breaches of environmental regulations, such as fines of up to $825 million.
Senator Watt said protecting the environment went hand-in-hand with slashing red tape, and splitting the two up would be "silly."
"We need to do both, it's not about cherry-picking one or the other," he told reporters in Canberra on Monday.
Senator Watt also played down the prospects of striking a deal this week, saying it would be "pretty unusual" to have an agreement before the legislation had been introduced in to parliament.
But political insiders from both major parties insist a deal is still possible, and will likely happen quickly once the final stumbling blocks are resolved.
Coalition infighting over environment and climate policy is also expected to dominate the coming days in parliament.
The Nationals are yet to declare their position on net-zero emissions by 2050, which risks splitting the coalition again, after a previous separation from the Liberals in response to the disastrous May 3 federal election.
Nationals senator Matt Canavan is carrying out a review of the regional party's climate and energy policy, but could not confirm on Sunday whether the work had been completed.
