Environment Protection (Waste to Resources) Policy
The EPA is in the process of developing Environment Protection (Waste to Resources) Policy (Waste to Resources EPP) for the consideration of the Minister. The general purpose of the Waste to Resources EPP will be to provide for waste to be managed in a more sustainable way that will help protect the environment and public health as well as promote appropriate recovery of resources. It will provide a stronger regulatory basis for strategies within South Australia's State Waste Strategy 2005-2010. Once the draft EPP is completed it will be made available for public comment.
Review of Schedule 1 of the Environment Protection Act 199
Activities of environmental significance or those activities that require a licence are outlined in Part A of Schedule 1 of the Environment Protection Act 1993. As part of a wider review of the Schedule, waste to resources activities will undergo an assessment to ensure that the types of activities to be licensed are those found to be of higher risk based on the:
- risk of environmental harm (likelihood and consequence) associated with the activity type
- level of complexity or specificity of management requirements for the activity to avoid unacceptable impacts and/or to support sustainable development.
The way that the activities are described will also be reviewed to both improve interpretability and ensure the thresholds are appropriate.
This process is underway and it is envisaged that a draft version of the schedule will be released for consultation late 2008.
Waste management regulatory framework
As part of the decision-making process for the EPA regulation of the waste management industry, the EPA considers the:
- risks of environmental harm associated with the activity type
- level of complexity or specificity of management requirements for the activity to avoid unacceptable harm and/or to support sustainable development
- need to act in accordance with the polluter-pays principle.
In the process of this consideration there are a number of tools available to the EPA under the Environment Protection Act 1993 and the Development Act 1993.
For further details see: Waste management – regulatory framework and objectives Waste management - regulatory framework and objectives (44KB PDF).
Review of Compliance and enforcement guidelines
The EPA Compliance and Enforcement Guidelines provide direction on the use of the compliance and enforcement provisions of the EPA Act, thus assisting industry and community groups to understand EPA responses to issues. This document is currently under review to ensure its currency and suitability.
This page was last modified 20-05-2008
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