Victoria’s transforming their Environment Laws: Are you ready for 2020?
01 August 2019
Did you know
Victoria’s
environment protection
laws are changing?
Taking effect from 1 July 2020, The Environment Protection Amendment Act
2018 will introduce new laws and stringent duties that include the
reporting and management of
contaminated land. The changes will have
wide-ranging implications and obligations for individuals and
organisations who own, control or manage known or potentially
contaminated land.
According to the Department of
Environment, Land, Water and Planning, the legislation will enhance
the protection of Victoria’s environment and human health through a more
proportionate, risk-based environment protection framework that
includes:
-
A preventative approach through a general environmental duty
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Significant reforms to contaminated land and waste management
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Increased maximum penalties including both criminal and civil charges
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A tiered system of EPA permissions with risk based regulatory oversight
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Requirements for more environmental information to be publicly available
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Modernising and strengthening EPA’s compliance and enforcement powers.
Tim Dowle, Associate Director for
Environment believes that the changes to the Act will better align the
state of Victoria with the rest of the Australia. He says, “The new laws
are arguably more stringent than those in other states, moreover they
are significant in the fact that they represent a step change for
Victoria by preventing waste and pollution impacts, rather than managing
the impacts once they have occurred.”
WSP’s dedicated team of contaminated land experts is well equipped to
help our clients navigate the new regulatory system in Victoria. A range
of contaminated land risk management strategies are available, and these
can be tailored based on the nature of the client’s property portfolio,
land uses, risk profile and budgetary constraints.
--ENDS--
Source: WSP - www.wsp.com
Contact: N/A
External Links: https://www.wsp.com/en-AU/services/contaminated-land-and-soil-remediation
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