The Federal Government has passed new legislation through Parliament that will strengthen the authority of the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority.

The Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (Compliance Measures No.2) Bill 2013 will aim to safeguard against future incidents such as the uncontrolled release of hydrocarbons when the Montara Wellhead Platform malfunctioned in 2009.

"Recent incidents like the tragic accident on the Stena Clyde rig in the Otway Basin in Bass Strait remind us of the need for effective regulations to ensure continuous improvement and accountability in the operations of the offshore petroleum industry," Minister for Resources and Energy Gary Gray said.

"This Bill ensures regulators and the courts can apply more stringent requirements for offshore petroleum and greenhouse gas operations to protect their workforce and Australia's environmental assets.

"Now, polluters have a statutory responsibility to respond to an oil leak or spill and pay all the costs of clean-up, remediation of the environment and environmental monitoring if they have not met their statutory responsibilities."