Under the review, the parliamentary committee considered 6 case studies, including
- land contamination issues at Botany and Hillsdale;
- coal dust pollution in the Hunter;
- the response to groundwater contamination in the Pilliga;
- the prosecution of the Du Pont company for alleged land pollution in the western Sydney suburb of Girraween;
- the operation of the cruise ship terminal at White Bay; and
- the regulation of forestry practices in Royal Camp State Forest.
While the committee found that overall the NSW EPA is performing the majority of its functions in keeping with its objectives, it noted areas for improvement.
In particular, the committee raised governance concerns and has recommended the role of chairperson of the NSW EPA board be independent and separate from the role of chief executive officer.
The committee said despite the NSW EPA’s efforts to build stronger relationships with stakeholders, it needed to improve its communications with local communities.
The committee also considers that the NSW EPA could make greater use of Protection of the Environment Policies (PEPs), available to it under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997, and give serious consideration to applying a multiplier effect for penalty notices to repeat offenders and setting maximum pollution or emissions caps for zones and regions.
The committee has also recommended the NSW EPA be adequately resourced to clear the backlog of contaminated sites awaiting assessment, develop systems to ensure contaminated lands are assessed in a more timely manner, and take steps to ensure timely communication of all pollution incidents.
Other recommendations include:
- That the NSW EPA consult with the new Chief Scientist and Engineer to review the air quality monitoring strategy in the Upper and Lower Hunter;
- A comprehensive review of the NSW EPA’s licensing procedure for hazardous chemicals;
- That investigations into significant (coal seam gas) pollution incidents should be led by independent experts working with the NSW EPA, not the coal seam gas company under investigation;
- That, in the event that the Chief Scientist recommends that all coal trains be fully covered and all empty wagons be washed to reduce coal dust emissions, the NSW EPA amend the relevant licences to adopt the Chief Scientist’s recommendation.
The NSW Government is required to provide a response to the report by 13 August 2015.
