Transmittal to the Minister
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AUTHORITY ANNUAL REPORT 2007 • 2008 TRANSMITTAL TO THE MINISTER MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT In accordance with s21 of the Environmental Protection Act 1986, I submit the EPA’s Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2008. It is with pleasure that, on behalf of the EPA, I advise that for the reporting period to 30 June 2008, the EPA has conducted its functions such that it has met its objectives outlined in s15 of the Environmental Protection Act 1986. This has been achieved with the assistance of the services and facilities of the Department of Environment and Conservation. Dr Paul Vogel CHAIRMAN 13 October 2008 I Contents Page TRANSMITTAL TO THE MINISTER ..................................................................................I CHAIRMAN’S OVERVIEW .................................................................................................. 1 MEMBERS................................................................................................................................ 5 MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES.................................................................................. 7 Review of WA’s Environmental Impact Assessment process................................................ 7 Application of s.4A principles ................................................................................................ 8 Water Quality Improvement Plan for the Peel Inlet-Harvey Estuarine System ..................... 9 Bulletin 1256 Mount Manning Section 16 Advice................................................................. 9 Environmental Protection Authority’s role in the Kimberley Hub Strategic Assessment.... 10 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF PROPOSALS ................................................... 12 DEMONSTRATING ENVIRONMENTAL ACCEPTABILITY....................................... 15 TIMELINES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT OF PROPOSALS........................................................................................................................... 16 STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT .......................................................... 18 MAJOR PROJECTS.............................................................................................................. 19 Pluto Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Development............................................................... 19 Preston Industrial Park S16 Advice ...................................................................................... 21 Keralup MasterPlan .............................................................................................................. 22 Iron Ore - Mesa A................................................................................................................. 23 Mesa K ..................................................................................................................... 24 Fremantle Ports Outer Harbour Project (Kwinana Quays)................................................... 25 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF PLANNING SCHEMES ................................. 26 SECTION 45C APPROVALS ............................................................................................... 28 POLICY DEVELOPMENT................................................................................................... 28 Environmental Protection Policies........................................................................................ 29 Policies Being Implemented ................................................................................................. 29 State Environmental Policies ................................................................................................ 30 Position Statements............................................................................................................... 31 Guidance Statements............................................................................................................. 34 MONITORING OF LIQUID WASTE TREATMENT FACILITY, BROOKDALE...... 36 REGULATION 17 APPLICATIONS................................................................................... 37 Alcoa Wagerup refinery........................................................................................................ 37 Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines ................................................................................... 37 Millennium Inorganic Chemicals, Australind....................................................................... 37 CONSULTATION .................................................................................................................. 37 SITE VISITS CARRIED OUT BY THE EPA..................................................................... 38 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AUTHORITY REFERENCE PANELS .............. 38 APPENDICES......................................................................................................................... 39 APPENDIX 1: Public Environmental Review (PER) Reports............................................ 39 APPENDIX 2: Environmental Protection Statement and Assessment on Referral Information (EPS and ARI) Reports........................................................... 39 APPENDIX 3: Proposal Unlikely to be Environmentally Acceptable (PUEA) Reports .... 40 APPENDIX 4: Section 16 Strategic Advice Reports .......................................................... 40 APPENDIX 5: Section 43 Reports ...................................................................................... 40 APPENDIX 6: Section 46 Reports ...................................................................................... 41 APPENDIX 7: Section 48A Report..................................................................................... 41 APPENDIX 8: Regulation 17 Variation Reports ................................................................ 41 APPENDIX 9: Position Statements..................................................................................... 41 APPENDIX 10: Guidance Statements for the Assessment of Environmental Factors ........ 42 APPENDIX 11: EPA site visits ............................................................................................ 43 APPENDIX 12: Attendance at EPA Meetings ..................................................................... 43 APPENDIX 13: Section 45C List of approved changes to proposals .................................. 43 APPENDIX 14: Financial Report......................................................................................... 47 Electoral Act 1907 (s175 ZE Disclosure) ............................................................................. 47 APPENDIX 15: Abbreviations............................................................................................. 48 Tables Table 1: Environmental Protection Authority’s Completed Assessments in 07-08 ........... 13 Table 2: Timelines for major projects (in weeks)............................................................... 13 Table 3: Environmental Protection Policies in force and their status as at June 2008 ....... 32 Table 4: Environmental Protection Policies in development.............................................. 33 Table 5: State Environmental Policies in force and their status as at June 2008................ 33 Table 6: State Environmental Policies in development ...................................................... 33 Figures: Figure 1: Average time taken for the assessment of proposals over the past five years..... 14 CHAIRMAN’S OVERVIEW Firstly, I would like to thank Barry Carbon and Dr Andrea Hinwood for their leadership of the EPA and their contributions to environmental protection and management prior to my appointment as Chairman in November 2007. As the primary source of independent environmental advice to government, principally delivered through assessing the environmental acceptability of development proposals and planning schemes, the EPA faces new and complex challenges. These challenges are largely around firstly, the increasing scrutiny of environmental impact assessment both in terms of EPA Chairman the process delivering timely, high quality advice to Dr Paul Vogel government and secondly, its capacity to identify, understand, manage and control a rapidly expanding range of environmental issues, risks and impacts (including cumulative impacts and risks) to community health and well-being and important ecosystems and biodiversity values. The challenges must be met at a time when both environmental systems and decision- making systems are under enormous pressures from the unprecedented step change in the State’s economy, including the attendant pressures on infrastructure, housing and services. The pressure on the environment is matched by the pressure on the people who provide the highly competent and critical technical, scientific, policy and environmental management advice to the EPA to enable it to make judgments about the environmental acceptability of development through the process of environmental impact assessment (EIA). EIA is a predictive tool that is systematically applied at the early planning and design stages of development proposals and planning schemes so that government and the community can form a view about their environmental acceptability and what conditions, if any, can be applied to control potential risks and impacts. Because EIA is a predictive tool it deals in uncertainty and risk. The environmental effects of development are often difficult to predict. Predictions must often be made