Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities Annual Report 2011–12
Compliance and enforcement activities
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- Operation of the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989
- Purpose of the Act
- Operational aspects of the Act
Compliance and enforcement activitiesThe Australian Refrigeration Council conducts a compliance audit program under its contract. A range of audits are conducted, including on-site (planned, scheduled audits), remote (paper-based), desktop (telephone-based) and drive-by (randomaudits). Technical assistance is also provided to the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service where illegal import is suspected, and the ARC follows up complaints about permit holders. The ARC manages low-level compliance issues. Of the 4442 compliance audits (on-site and remote) conducted in 2011–12, 3580 licence holders were found to be compliant at the time of audit. Of the 862 licence holders found to be non-compliant, 345 became compliant as a result of compliance education activities by the ARC. Of the 517 cases that remained non-compliant, 427 will be further managed by the ARC. The ARC refers cases of extended non-compliance to the department for management. Ninety cases were referred to the department in 2011–12. Of these, 52 achieved compliance, with the remaining cases still in progress at the end of 2011–12. Table 7: Number of audits conducted in 2011–12
FinancesThe permit system operated by the ARC collected $6,139,156 in permit application fees to 1 July 2012. The department paid the ARC $4,631,274 (GST exclusive) in operating expenses over the same period. Fire protectionThe Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Regulations established a competency-based permit scheme for the fire protection industry in Australia for systems using halocarbon-extinguishing agents. Four types of permits are issued:
Table 8: Permits issued at 30 June 2012
FinancesThe permit system operated by the Fire Protection Association of Australia collected $162,900 to 30 June 2012 in permit application fees. The department paid the Fire Protection Association of Australia $436,391 in operating expenses over the same period. Montreal Protocol’s Multilateral FundAustralia provides financial assistance through the Montreal Protocol’s Multilateral Fund to assist developing countries to comply with the phaseout requirements under the protocol. In 2011, Australia was one of 14 members of the Executive Committee of the Multilateral Fund. The committee oversees governance of the funding, including considering project approvals and outcomes. Australia chaired the Executive Committee in 2011. Australia continued to participate in the Executive Committee in 2012, sharing membership with Canada. Operation of the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989The Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 enables Australia to meet its obligations under the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (the Basel Convention). The Basel Convention regulates the international movements of hazardous wastes. The Basel Convention was developed by the United Nations Environment Programme and adopted on 22 March 1989. Australia ratified the Basel Convention on 5 February 1992, and it came into effect on 5 May 1992. The Basel Convention imposes two kinds of obligations on members. Members are required to:
Purpose of the ActThe purpose of the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 is to regulate the export, import and transit of hazardous waste and to ensure that exported, imported or transited waste is managed in an environmentally sound manner. Operational aspects of the ActIn 2011–12 the department received 42 permit applications under the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 for transboundary movement of hazardous wastes. These comprised 16 export, 19 import and seven transit applications. Of the 42 applications, 19 were granted permits, two were refused a permit, two were withdrawn and 19 were still being processed as at 30 June 2012. All permit applications were processed within statutory timeframes. Details on each permit application and decision under the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 is published in the Australian Government Gazette.
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