Waste management laws
Environmental Protection (Waste Management) Policy 2000 (Qld)
Environmental Protection (Waste Management) Regulation 2000 (Qld)
Introduction
The Queensland Government introduced specific waste management legislation which commenced on 1 July 2000. The Environmental Protection (Waste Management) Policy 2000 (the Policy) and the Environmental Protection (Waste Management) Regulation 2000 (the Regulation) clarify waste management practices in Queensland and provide improved environmental safeguards.
Developed in conjunction with local government and industry, the legislation will benefit Queensland communities through safer disposal practices and cost savings from improved planning and management of waste services
What’s changed?
Before 1 July 2000, waste was managed under provisions contained in several pieces of legislation including the Litter Act 1971 (Qld) and the Environmental Protection (Interim Waste) Regulation 1996 (Qld).
The Policy and the Regulation unify waste requirements and address waste streams previously not subject to legislation. This has required changes to some existing legislation, including the repeal of the Litter Act 1971 and the Environmental Protection (Interim Waste) Regulation 1996 (which was incorporated into the Regulation on 31 August 2007).
Policy summary
The Policy provides a strategic framework for managing waste in Queensland. It does this by establishing a preferred waste management hierarchy and principles for achieving good waste management.
The waste management hierarchy moves from the most preferred to least preferred method:
- waste avoidance;
- waste re-use;
- waste recycling;
- energy recovery from waste; and
- waste disposal.
The principles for achieving good waste management include:
- the "polluter-pays principle" — all costs associated with waste management should, where possible, be borne by the waste generator;
- the "user-pays principle" — all costs associated with the use of a resource should, where possible, be included in the price of goods and services developed from that resource; and
- the "product-stewardship principle" — the producer or importer of a product should take all reasonable steps to minimise environmental harm from the production, use and disposal of the product.
These principles and the waste management hierarchy provide a basis for waste management programs that may be required as a condition of approval for an environmentally relevant activity for industry, for voluntary industry waste reduction programs and for state and local government waste management strategic plans.
The Policy also provides for:
- criteria for administering authorities to follow when making environmental management decisions concerning waste;
- the contents of waste management programs, which may be required as a condition of approval of an environmentally relevant activity under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 (Qld);
- voluntary industry waste reduction agreements which an industry member or association can enter. These agreements are designed to minimise the amount of waste generated by industry, promote efficient and cost-effective approaches to waste reduction and encourage greater responsibility for waste reduction within industries; and
State Government departments and local governments to undertake strategic waste management planning, to encourage sustainable waste management practices.
Regulation summary
The Regulation addresses waste issues which were not dealt with, or were not clearly defined, under previous legislation, providing clarification to waste producers and state and local government. In addition, the Regulation gives legislative support to various national guidelines, plans and Australian Standards.
The Regulation also provides for:
- offences for littering, waste dumping, unlawful disposal of hypodermic needles and unlawful activities at waste facilities;
- a waste-tracking system that tracks specified wastes and obtains data on the generation, transportation and treatment/disposal of these wastes within Queensland and interstate;
- clinical and related waste management planning, segregation of infectious wastes, appropriate on-site storage and proper disposal;
- managing and ultimately phasing out certain polychlorinated biphenyls; and
- design rules for waste equipment and toilets.
Where to access the legislation
The legislation can be purchased from GOPRINT.
An electronic copy of the legislation is available at the Office of Parliamentary Counsel.
Last updated: 07 September 2007
