The WAPC has the power to acquire and dispose of land under particular legislation.  A list of those sections of the relevant Acts and Regulations are identified below.

Region schemes

The following terms and definitions are part of the Planning and Development Act 2005 or other Acts where applicable.

Commission – refers to the Western Australian Planning Commission established under section 7 of the Planning and Development Act 2005

Department – refers to the Department for Planning and Infrastructure

Development – the development or use of any land including:

a) Any demolition, erection, construction, alteration of or addition to any building or structure on the land;

b) The carrying out on the land of any excavation or other works

c) In the case of a place to which a conservation order made under section 59 of the Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990 applies, any act or thing that –
(i) Is likely to change the character of that place or the external appearance of any building or
(ii) Would constitute an irreversible alteration of the fabric of any building.

Development Application - an application under a planning scheme, or under an interim planning order, for approval of development

Improvement Plan – Recommended under section 119 of the Planning and Development Act 2005 for the purpose of advancing the planning, development and use of any land within a part of the State to which a planning scheme applies.

Lot – a defined portion of land depicted on a plan or diagram and for which a separate Crown Grant or Certificate of Title has been or can be issued or depicted on a diagram or plan of survey of a subdivision approved by the Commission but does not include a lot in relation to a strata scheme, a lot in relation to a survey-strata scheme or a lot shown as common property on a survey strata plan as defined by the Strata Titles Act 1985.

Certificate of Title - The document or title to land held under the Torrens system.  It consists of duplicate deeds stating the fact and extent of interest of a person/s in the land.  It contains a volume and folio number, lot number, address, survey plans and a description of any encumbrances (mortgages, easements, memorials and caveats.

Region Scheme – a planning scheme continued under section 33 (1) of the Planning and Development Act 2005 or any region planning scheme made in substitution for that scheme.  The scheme therein for regulating and controlling the use of the land the subject of the scheme and the purposes for which the land may be used and includes –

(a) The provisions of the scheme;
(b) All maps, plans, specifications, and other particulars contained in the scheme and colourings, markings or legends of the scheme

Region Planning Scheme - means either the Metropolitan Region Scheme in force under the Metropolitan Region Scheme Act 1959 or any regional planning scheme in force under the Western Australian Planning Scheme Act 1985 prior to the Planning and Development Act 2005 or section 33 (part 4)

Reserved Land – means land reserved for a purpose under the scheme . The purposes can be for parks and recreation, primary regional roads, other regional roads, railways, waterways, conservation areas etc.

Peel Region Scheme – applies to the Peel Region Scheme that comprises all the districts of the City of Mandurah, the Shire of Murray and the Shire of Waroona and Shire of Boddington as identified in the scheme map.

Proposed Greater Bunbury Region Scheme - this is a draft proposal for the for the districts of City of Bunbury, Shire of Capel, Harvey & Dardanup as identified in the scheme maps.

Planning Control Area – a planning control area declared and in force under section 112 of the Planning and Development Act 2005.

Land  includes;

(a) Land, tenements and hereditaments; any interest in land, tenements and hereditaments
(b) Houses, buildings, and other works and structures

Road – a public thoroughfare for vehicles (as defined in the Road Traffic Act 1974) or pedestrians, and includes structures or other things appurtenant to the road that are within its limits, and a thoroughfare is not prevented from being a road only because it is not open at each end.

Subdivision  - includes amalgamation

Board – The Board of Valuers established under section 182 of the Planning and Development Act 2005.

Non-Conforming Use – a use of land which, though lawful immediately before the coming into operation of a planning scheme or amendment to a planning scheme, is not in conformity with a provision of that scheme which deals with a matter specified in schedule 7 clause 6 or 7

Public Purpose – means a purpose that serves or is intended to serve the interests of the public or a section of the public and includes a public work.