November Contaminated Land Assessment in NSW

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1 November 2015 Contaminated Land Assessment in NSW

2 Contaminated Site Assessment and Management Process Prompts for assessing site contamination: Acquisition or divestment of property Site rezoning or DA consent /SEPP 55 Trigger Known or foreseeable contamination triggering duty to report to NSW EPA Investigation/Assessment Stages: Preliminary Site Investigation Detailed Site Investigation Preparation of Remedial Action Plan (if unacceptable contamination identified) Remediation Validation Reporting Site Management Plan (if required) Preliminary Site Investigation Detailed Site Investigation Remedial Action Plan Remediation Validation Sampling and Reporting Site Audit Statement 2 November 2015

3 The National Environmental Protection (Assessment of Site Contamination) Measure 2013 Amendment Original 1999 NEPM presented rigid criteria for soil based on four landuse categories: Residential A Residential B Recreational Open Space Commercial/Industrial These still present in new NEPM (though revised to reflect new science) but a number of other health and environmental based criteria have been added New criteria are less rigid and require input of site specific parameters for their generation (e.g. contaminant depth, particle size, soil type, ph, cation exchange capacity, etc.) The shift of the NEPM has been towards providing a framework for site-specific risk-based criteria. Other additions include: New asbestos criteria Benzo(a)pyrene Toxic Equivalence Quotient (TEQ) Total Recoverable Hydrocarbons Vapour Risk 3 November 2015

4 Investigation Criteria vs. Clean-up/Remediation Criteria NEPM presents investigation criteria It states specifically that they aren t designed as cleanup or remediation criteria The investigation criteria, though focused on being more site specific than the 1999 NEPM are still very conservative as they are required to cover a broad range of landuse and natural scenarios (e.g. Public Open Space criteria covers parks, playgrounds, playing fields, secondary schools and footpaths) However, investigation criteria is still heavily used as cleanup criteria Site specific human health risk assessment (HHRA) and ecological risk assessment (ERA) to derive specific criteria (specified in Schedule B4 of the NEPM 2013 Amendment) Cost of doing HHRA at start of a remediation project to derive site specific criteria has the potential to significantly counterbalance the cost of unnecessary remediation of soil and/or water 4 November 2015

5 Oversight of Contaminated Site Projects in NSW NSW EPA sometimes gets directly involved in remediation projects (e.g. Barangaroo), but generally don t have the resources to oversee all Council usually finds themselves involved as consent authority for rezoning and DA but often lack resources and technical expertise in contamination management in-house To compensate for these issues, the NSW Site Auditor Scheme was introduced in 1998 The Site Auditor acts as an independent expert and a representative of NSW EPA The purpose of a CLM Audit is to oversee a consultant s work in determining: Nature and extent of contamination Nature and extent of management/remediation Whether remedial works have been successful in achieving project outcomes Whether site is suitable for the proposed landuse What ongoing management (if any) is required New Site Auditor Guidelines are currently under internal review by NSW EPA and will come out for external review in early November 2015

6 Duty to Report Contamination Duty to Report Contamination is provided for under Section 60 of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997 Where it meets relevant criteria, a site may trigger the duty of an individual to notify NSW EPA of contamination or foreseeable contamination The following people are required to notify the NSW EPA: Anyone whose activities have contaminated land An owner of land that has been contaminated Such a person is required to notify the NSW EPA in the following circumstances: The level of the contaminant in, or on, soil is equal to or above a level of contamination set out in the NEPM or other approved guideline value with respect to a current or approved use of the land, and people have been, or foreseeably will be, exposed to the contaminant; or The contamination meets a criterion prescribed by the regulations; or The contaminant or a by-product has entered, or will foreseeably enter, neighbouring land, the atmosphere, groundwater or surface water, and is above, or will foreseeably be above, a level of contamination set out in the NEPM or other approved guidelines and will foreseeably continue to remain equal to or above that level. The original 2009 Guidelines were updated in Main changes include: More comprehensive adoption of the NEPM 2013 New guidance on groundwater, surface water, vapour intrusion and asbestos in soils Better definition of what is considered foreseeable 6 November 2015

7 New Consultant Certification Schemes New consultant certification scheme developed to ensure a standard of quality in the industry Currently two operating schemes run by EIANZ (CEnvP) and CRC CARE (SCPA). A third also being prepared by CPSS Both CEnvP and SCPA to be endorsed by NSW EPA. Different states and territories currently moving to endorse one or the other or both Requirements for certification include CPD logs, interviews, proof of academic background, references, detailed CV, etc. The regulator in the future, is going to require all reports submitted to NSW EPA to be reviewed and approved by a SCPA or CEnvP practitioner. Such reports would relate to the following: Preliminary Investigation Orders Management Orders Voluntary Management Orders Ongoing Maintenance Orders Duty to Report Contamination The system is currently in a 24 month transition period. The full commencement of the scheme is set to take place from 1 July November 2015

8 Waste Management Overview in NSW Overarching legislation for waste in NSW Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 Covers everything from how waste is classified and transported to who can accept it Also covers the licensing and environmental management of waste management facilities Waste generated on-site is classified into the following: Liquid Waste General Solid Waste (Putrescible) General Solid Waste (Non-Putrescible) Restricted Solid Waste Hazardous Waste Special Waste (an additional classification which overlies the General Solid Waste or Restricted Solid Waste classification which includes asbestos, tyre and clinical wastes Waste tracking requirements both within NSW and interstate have changed recently 8 November 2015

9 Waste Reuse and Improved Characterisation Since the POEO Act came in in 1997 there has been a growing need to divert waste materials away from landfill and minimise the inappropriate landfilling of otherwise useable waste. The Protection of the Environment Operations Regulations since 2005 (the latest being 2014) have been put in place in part to redress the balance. One means of doing this has been to provide exemptions to parts of the POEO Act so that certain types of materials can be beneficially reused. These exemptions can be split into two types: General Exemptions (e.g. the Excavated Natural Materials Exemption and the Recovered Aggregate Exemption); and Specific Exemptions (developed specific to a waste generated by a particular site or individual who wants to find a beneficial reuse for that waste. Requires direct consultation with NSW EPA) These exemptions coupled with escalation of the waste levy represent part of a carrot and stick approach implemented by the EPA to minimise waste generation and unnecessary landfilling 9 November 2015

10 Waste Reuse and Improved Characterisation (Cont d) Classification of wastes can be further characterised and potentially downgraded from their initial classification through a range of means: Further characterisation: Leachability (TCLP) testing Statistical analysis (95% UCL) Remediation of waste material: On-site prior to off-site disposal (e.g. bioremediation of hydrocarbon impacted soils) Off-site remediation at a specific remediation site For hazardous waste which cannot be disposed off-site without prior treatment, immobilisation of the contaminant, including: Natural immobilisation already deemed immobile because of natural properties of the contaminant or matrix Chemical fixation chemically converted to a stable form Micro-encapsulation Treated to physically lock up contamination in the structure of the waste Macro-encapsulation Emplacement in a specifically engineered cell at the waste facility 10 November 2015

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