(1) In this Act,
unless the contrary intention appears—
"activity" includes the storage or possession of a pollutant;
"administering agency"—see Division 1A of Part 3;
"air" includes any layer of the atmosphere;
"amenity value" of an area includes any quality or condition of the area that
conduces to its enjoyment;
"appointed member", in relation to the Board, means a member appointed by the
Governor;
"appropriate person", in relation to the issuing of a site
contamination assessment order or site remediation order, means the person who
is the appropriate person under Part 10A to be issued with the order;
"approved recovered resource"—see section 4A;
"associate"—see subsection (2);
"authorised officer" means a person appointed to be an authorised officer
under Division 1 of Part 10;
"the Authority" means the Environment Protection Authority established under
Division 1 of Part 3;
"background concentrations", in relation to chemical substances on a site or
below its surface, means results obtained from carrying out assessments of the
presence of the substances in the vicinity of the site in accordance with
guidelines from time to time issued by the Authority;
"beverage container approval" means an approval for the purposes of Division 2
of Part 8;
"Board" means the Board of the Environment Protection Authority established as
the governing body of the Authority under Division 1 of Part 3;
"business" includes a business not carried on for profit or gain and any
activity undertaken by government or a public authority;
"cause" site contamination—see section 103D;
"chemical substance" means any organic or inorganic substance, whether a
solid, liquid or gas (or combination thereof), and includes waste;
"Chief Executive" of the Authority means a person who is, for the time being,
taken to be the Chief Executive of the Authority in accordance with
section 14A;
"clean-up authorisation" means a clean-up authorisation issued under Division
4 of Part 10;
"clean-up order" means a clean-up order issued under Division 4 of Part 10;
"climate change adaptation" means any process of adjusting to the actual or
expected effects of climate change;
"climate change mitigation" means measures or activities that relate to
reducing the rate of climate change including (without limitation) by
limiting, reducing or preventing greenhouse gas emissions;
"coastal waters of the State" means any part of the sea that is from time to
time included in the coastal waters of the State by virtue of the
Coastal Waters (State Powers) Act 1980 of the Commonwealth;
"condition" includes a limitation;
"contravene" includes fail to comply with;
"council" means a council within the meaning of the Local Government
Act 1999 ;
"director" of a body corporate includes a person occupying or acting in the
position of a director or member of the governing body of the body corporate,
by whatever name called and whether or not validly appointed to occupy or duly
authorised to act in the position, and includes any person in accordance with
whose directions or instructions the directors or members of the governing
body are accustomed to act;
"disposal", of waste or other matter—see subsection (4);
"document" means a paper or record of any kind, including a disk, tape or
other article from which information is capable of being reproduced (with or
without the aid of another article or device);
"domestic activity" means an activity other than an activity undertaken in the
course of a business;
"domestic partner" means a person who is a domestic partner within the meaning
of the Family Relationships Act 1975 , whether declared as such under
that Act or not;
"environment" means land, air, water, organisms and ecosystems, and
includes—
(a)
human-made or modified structures or areas; and
(b) the
amenity values of an area;
"environmental authorisation" means a works approval, licence or exemption;
"environmental harm"—see section 5;
"environmental nuisance" means—
(a) any
adverse effect on an amenity value of an area that—
(i)
is caused by pollution; and
(ii)
unreasonably interferes with or is likely to interfere
unreasonably with the enjoyment of the area by persons occupying a place
within, or lawfully resorting to, the area; or
(b) any
unsightly or offensive condition caused by pollution;
"environment performance agreement" means an environment performance agreement
entered into under Part 7;
"environment protection order" means an environment protection order issued
under Division 2 of Part 10;
"environment protection policy" means an environment protection policy made
under Part 5;
"the Environment, Resources and Development Court" means the Court of that
name established under the Environment, Resources and Development Court
Act 1993 ;
"exemption" means an exemption under Part 6 from the application of a
specified provision of this Act;
"the general environmental duty" means the duty under Part 4;
"greenhouse gas emissions" has the same meaning as in the
Climate Change and Greenhouse Emissions Reduction Act 2007 ;
"holding company" has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001 of
the Commonwealth;
"information discovery order" means an information discovery order issued
under Division 3 of Part 10;
"injury" includes illness;
"land" means, according to context—
(a) land
as a physical entity, including land covered with water; or
(b) any
legal estate or interest in, or right in respect of, land;
"liability" for site contamination means—
(a)
liability to be issued with an order under Part 10A in respect of the
site contamination; or
(b)
liability to pay an amount ordered by the Court under Part 11 in respect of
the site contamination;
"licence" means a licence under Part 6 to undertake a
prescribed activity of environmental significance;
"mandatory provisions" of an environment protection policy—see Part 5;
"marine waters" means the coastal waters of the State or any part of the sea
that is within the limits of the State, and includes any estuary or tidal
waters;
"material environmental harm" —see section 5;
"national environment protection measure" means a national
environment protection measure made under the prescribed national scheme laws;
"noise" includes vibration;
"occupier", in relation to a place, includes a person with a right to occupy
the place or a licensee or any holder of a right to use or carry on operations
at the place, but does not include a mortgagee in possession unless the
mortgagee assumes active management of the place;
"officer", in relation to a body corporate, means—
(a) a
director of the body corporate; or
(b) the
chief executive officer of the body corporate; or
(c) a
receiver or manager of any property of the body corporate or a liquidator of
the body corporate,
and includes, in relation to a contravention or alleged contravention of this
Act by the body corporate, an employee of the body corporate with management
responsibilities in respect of the matters to which the contravention or
alleged contravention related;
"owner" of land means—
(a) if
the land is unalienated from the Crown—the Crown; or
(b) if
the land is alienated from the Crown by grant in fee simple—the owner
(at law or in equity) of the estate in fee simple; or
(c) if
the land is held from the Crown by lease or licence—the lessee or
licensee; or
(d) if
the land is held from the Crown under an agreement to purchase—the
person who has the right to purchase;
"place" includes any land, water, premises or structure;
"pollutant" means—
(a) any
solid, liquid or gas (or combination thereof) including waste, smoke, dust,
fumes and odour; or
(b)
noise; or
(c)
heat; or
(d)
anything declared by regulation to be a pollutant for the purposes of this Act
(following consultation by the Minister on the regulation with prescribed
bodies in accordance with the regulations); or
(e)
anything declared by an environment protection policy to be a pollutant for
the purposes of this Act,
but does not include anything declared by regulation or by an environment
protection policy not to be a pollutant for the purposes of this Act;
"pollute" means—
(a)
discharge, emit, deposit, dispose of or disturb pollutants; or
(b)
cause or fail to prevent the discharge, emission, depositing, disposal,
disturbance or escape of pollutants,
and "pollution" has a corresponding meaning;
"pre-school" means a place primarily used for the care or instruction of
children of less than primary school age not resident at the site, and
includes a nursery, kindergarten or child-care centre;
"prescribed activity of environmental significance" means an activity
specified in Schedule 1 as amended from time to time by regulation;
"the prescribed national scheme laws" means—
(a) the
prescribed law of the Commonwealth; and
(b) the
prescribed law of this State; and
(c) the
laws of other States or Territories of the Commonwealth corresponding to the
prescribed law of this State,
under which national environment protection measures may be made;
"prescribed person" means—
(a) a
natural person; or
(b) a
body corporate that is not the holder of an environmental authorisation under
this Act; or
(c) if
the regulations specify a scheme under which the holder of an
environmental authorisation may apply to the Authority to be accredited as an
accredited licensee in respect of a particular prescribed activity of
environmental significance—a body corporate that is an accredited
licensee under such a scheme;
"public authority" includes a Minister, statutory authority or council;
"related body corporate" has the same meaning as in the Corporations Act 2001
of the Commonwealth;
"remediate" a site means treat, contain, remove or manage chemical substances
on or below the surface of the site so as to—
(a)
eliminate or prevent actual or potential harm to the health or safety of human
beings that is not trivial, taking into account current or proposed land uses;
and
(b)
eliminate or prevent, as far as reasonably practicable—
(i)
actual or potential harm to water that is not trivial;
and
(ii)
any other actual or potential environmental harm that is
not trivial, taking into account current or proposed land uses,
and "remediation" has a corresponding meaning;
"repealed environment law" means an Act or provision repealed by this Act;
"resource recovery", in relation to waste or other matter, means—
(a)
reusing the waste or matter; or
(b)
recycling the waste or matter; or
(c)
recovering energy or other resources from the waste or matter;
"sell" includes—
(a)
supply on a gratuitous basis for commercial promotional purposes; and
(b)
offer or display for sale or such supply;
"sensitive use" means—
(a) use
for residential purposes; or
(b) use
for a pre-school; or
(c) use
for a primary school; or
(d) use
of a kind prescribed by regulation;
"serious environmental harm"—see section 5;
"site" means an area of land (whether or not in the same ownership or
occupation);
"site contamination"—see section 5B;
"site contamination assessment order" means a site
contamination assessment order under Part 10A;
"site contamination audit" means a review carried out by a person that—
(a)
examines assessments or remediation carried out by another person in respect
of known or suspected site contamination on or below the surface of a site;
and
(b) is
for the purpose of determining any 1 or more of the following matters:
(i)
the nature and extent of any site contamination present
or remaining on or below the surface of the site;
(ii)
the suitability of the site for a sensitive use or
another use or range of uses;
(iii)
what remediation is or remains necessary for a specified
use or range of uses;
"site contamination auditor" means a person accredited under Division 4 of
Part 10A as a site contamination auditor;
"site contamination audit report", in relation to a site contamination audit,
means a detailed written report that—
(a) sets
out the findings of the audit and complies with the guidelines from time to
time issued by the Authority; and
(b)
includes a summary of the findings of the audit certified, in the prescribed
form, by the site contamination auditor who personally carried out or directly
supervised the audit;
"site contamination audit statement", in relation to a site
contamination audit, means a copy (that must comply with the regulations) of
the summary of the findings of the audit certified, in the prescribed form, by
the site contamination auditor who personally carried out or directly
supervised the audit;
"site contamination consultant" means a person other than a
site contamination auditor who, for fee or reward, assesses the existence or
nature or extent of site contamination;
"site remediation order" means a site remediation order under Part 10A;
"spouse"—a person is the spouse of another if they are legally married;
"treatment", of waste or other matter—see subsection (4);
"unauthorised stockpiling", of waste or other matter—see
subsection (5);
"undertake" an activity includes commence or proceed with an activity or
cause, suffer or permit an activity to be commenced or to proceed;
"vehicle" includes—
(a) any
vessel or aircraft; and
(b) a
vehicle within the meaning of the Road Traffic Act 1961 ;
"vessel" includes a vessel within the meaning of the Harbors and Navigation
Act 1993 ;
"waste"—see section 4;
"waste management hierarchy"—see section 4B;
"waste transport business" means a waste transport business (category A) or a
waste transport business (category B), each within the meaning of Schedule 1
Part A clause 3;
"water" means—
(a)
water occurring naturally above or under the ground; or
(b)
water introduced to an aquifer or other area under the ground; or
(c) an
artificially created body of water or stream that is for public use or
enjoyment;
"water protection area"—see section 61;
"works approval" means a works approval under Part 6 to carry out works in
respect of a building, structure, plant or equipment for use for a
prescribed activity of environmental significance.
(2) For the purposes
of this Act, a person is an "associate" of another if—
(a) they
are partners; or
(b) one
is a spouse, domestic partner, parent or child of another; or
(c) they
are both trustees or beneficiaries of the same trust, or one is a trustee and
the other is a beneficiary of the same trust; or
(d) one
is a body corporate or other entity (whether inside or outside Australia) and
the other is a director or member of the governing body of the body corporate
or other entity; or
(e) one
is a body corporate or other entity (whether inside or outside Australia) and
the other is a person who has a legal or equitable interest in five per cent
or more of the share capital of the body corporate or other entity; or
(f) they
are related bodies corporate; or
(g) a
relationship of a prescribed kind exists between them; or
(h) a
chain of relationships can be traced between them under any one or more of the
above paragraphs.
(3) For the purposes
of subsection (2), a "beneficiary" of a trust includes an object of a
discretionary trust.
(4) For the purposes
of this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—
(a) a
reference to the "disposal of waste or other matter" includes a reference to
stockpiling or abandoning the waste or matter; and
(b) a
reference to the "treatment of waste or other matter" includes a reference to
the treatment of waste or other matter for resource recovery; and
(c) a
reference to
the "treatment of waste or other matter for resource recovery" is a reference
to the treatment of the waste or matter in some way—
(i)
to recover material from the waste or matter that may be
reused or recycled; or
(ii)
to recover energy or other resources from the waste or
matter; or
(iii)
to prepare the waste for further treatment to recover
material from the waste or matter that may be reused or recycled or to recover
energy or other resources from the waste or matter,
and includes, but is not limited to, sorting, shredding, crushing, compacting
or packaging the waste or matter; and
(d) a
reference to "waste or matter of a particular kind" includes a reference to
material that contains waste or matter of that kind to a significant extent.
(5) For the purposes
of
this Act, "unauthorised stockpiling" of waste or other matter will be taken to
have occurred if a maximum allowable stockpile limit imposed by or under this
Act in relation to the waste or other matter has been exceeded.