Targeting the biggest risks to make the biggest impact 

Our regulatory priorities help us protect human health and the environment. 

They do this by focusing us on industries, activities, or areas that:

  • can cause harm
  • are not following the law. 

We have two types of priorities: 

  • enduring priorities 
  • annual priorities. 

To deliver our priorities we use our full range of regulatory tools and capabilities.

Enduring priorities 

Our enduring priorities focus on ever-present sources of harm. These can come from industrial, commercial, and domestic activities.

Enduring priorities are complex problems. To solve them we need to tailor our regulatory approach to be most effective.

These ever-present sources of harm are: 

  • industrial sites that deal with hazardous waste or emit pollution 
  • catastrophic events and major incidents, like
    • bushfires and floods 
    • chemical releases 
    • fires in waste stockpiles
  • smaller emissions that when combined have a big impact, like
    • smoke from domestic wood heaters
    • vehicle noise and emissions
    • plastic waste and litter
  • accidental spills from commercial and industrial activities, no matter how small 
  • contaminated areas from historical industrial and manufacturing activities
  • criminal activities, like illegal dumping 
  • developing or using land close to industrial sites, landfills and more. 

Annual priorities

We focus on where we can make the biggest difference in reducing risks from pollution and waste.

Each year we assess our enduring priorities to identify where we need to focus our efforts. To help us identify our priorities we use: 

  • research and data, such as air and water quality monitoring data
  • insights from community, like pollution reports
  • insights from industry 
  • our technical expertise and operational experience 
  • input from our partners, including Traditional Owners, local government, and co-regulators.

We use our full range of regulatory capabilities to prevent harm by location and sector, and at scale.

Find out more about our regulatory approach.

2024-25 Regulatory Priorities

Over the next year, we are focusing on 6 of the biggest current and future risks to your health and our environment.

Detailed in our Annual Delivery Plan 2024-25, we will prioritise:

  • managing the risks of harm from the causes and consequences of climate change
  • enabling the safe and sustainable renewal of contaminated land
  • enabling the safe reuse of waste
  • preventing fires in waste and resource recovery activities
  • reducing the risk of harm and impacts from landfills
  • reducing the illegal disposal of asbestos.

Read the 2024-25 Annual Delivery Plan.

Managing the risks of harm from the causes and consequences of climate change

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contribute to Victoria’s changing climate. This means 
  • a warmer and drier future
  • more frequent and intense heatwaves, bushfires, and storms.

These events can increase risks of harm from pollution and waste.

Everyone has a role to address risks to our communities and environment. This includes industry and business in Victoria. We will play our role as Victoria’s environmental regulator.

In 2025, we will publish a Statement of Regulatory Intent on Climate Change 2025 to 2027. We will consult with businesses and the community as we develop this statement. It will outline how we will focus our efforts and:
  • regulate activities that cause climate change
  • regulate activities that may be impacted by the effects of climate change.

We will focus on implementing the Statement of Regulatory Intent in 2025.

What we expect you to do

Our expectations will evolve over time. We expect business and industry to:

Enabling the safe and sustainable renewal of contaminated land

Victoria’s industrial and manufacturing past has left a legacy of contamination in some regional and metropolitan areas.

This contamination is often underground and can be unearthed during land development. Developing in contaminated areas creates an opportunity for cleaning up contamination. This can make the area useable for the community again.

To enable land development for new homes, we will streamline regulatory processes, and work with 

  • state and local government 
  • business and industry. 

We will continue to ensure developers are managing risks to community and environment.

What we expect you to do

We expect land development proponents to:
  • identify contamination you suspect is present
  • engage EPA early when planning developments in potentially contaminated areas
  • classify waste soil to find a lawful place to reuse or dispose of it
  • minimise risks of harm from the contamination, so far as reasonably practicable.

Enabling the safe reuse of waste

To move towards a circular economy, we need to:

  • reduce waste ending up in landfill, and 
  • reuse materials and resources.

We are focusing on waste processors operating safely and lawfully. This will support Victoria's move to a circular economy.

We will achieve this by:

  • working with the waste industry, like improving our organic waste recycling guidelines.
  • increasing inspections where there is a higher risk of mishandling wastes.

What we expect you to do

We expect businesses who process waste for reuse to:
  • only accept types of waste you are lawfully authorised to receive
  • ensure you manage wastes in a way that minimises risks of harm
  • hold the right permissions from EPA for your activity if you need to
  • understand the risks that may arise from supplying or using the recycled materials.

Preventing fires in waste and resource recovery activities

We do not tolerate unsafe waste practices that present a fire risk, and neither should you.

Fires at waste and resource recovery facilities can:

  • threaten workers’ safety
  • cause air and waterway pollution
  • affect residents
  • disrupt waste services.

We acknowledge battery-related fires are an increasing challenge for the waste sector. Many battery-related fires start in garbage trucks and waste facilities. These batteries can often come from household waste.

We are working with state and national partners to improve consistency between states.

Since 2017, industry awareness of fire risks has improved. Our joint-agency enforcement strategy has helped to reduce the severity of fires. But we continue to see unacceptable risks of fire in the waste and resource recovery sector.

To prevent waste fires, we are continuing to target fire risks in the sector. This means using our full range of enforcement tools.

What we expect you to do

You must take reasonable steps to prevent fires. We expect waste, recycling, and resource recovery activities to:
  • understand and address risks posed by your operations
  • have risk a management process that includes -
    • a current fire risk assessment
    • key fire prevention controls that you have put in place, monitored, and maintained
    • an emergency management plan
  • report to EPA if there is a fire or notifiable incident
  • remedy any non-compliance and maintain compliance.

Reducing the risk of harm and impacts from landfills

Landfills can pollute our land, water, and air if they are not managed correctly.

We are aware of continued impacts on the Victorian community from landfills. It is important that landfills operators protect the community from harm from:

  • landfill gases
  • leachate
  • land and water contamination.

This year, we will strengthen our monitoring and enforcement of landfills. We will ensure operators follow their obligations.

What we expect you to do

We expect landfills to:
  • follow their environmental obligations, like the General Environmental Duty and operating licence conditions
  • put in place best practice management for operating the landfill
  • respond to community concerns where required.

Reducing the illegal disposal of asbestos

Asbestos is commonly found in many homes built before 1990. EPA has a responsibility for asbestos waste in Victoria. This includes regulating:
  • transport
  • temporary storage
  • disposal.
Removing, transporting, and disposing of asbestos can be dangerous. You must manage asbestos waste the right way.

We are designing and delivering a strategy to reduce illegal asbestos disposal. We are collaborating with our government partners to develop this strategy.

We will also increase inspections where the risk of illegal activity is higher.

What we expect you to do

Any business removing, transporting, storing, or disposing of asbestos waste must:
  • understand and act in line with your environmental obligations
  • hold the right permission if you need one
  • make sure the place receiving the waste is a lawful place.

The safest way to remove asbestos is to use a licensed asbestos removalist.

Follow guidance from Asbestos in Victoria if you are removing asbestos.

Past Regulatory Priorities

In 2023-24, EPA targeted its regulatory activities to 6 priority areas:
  • reducing the impacts to waterways from wastewater treatment plants
  • reducing the impacts from smoke and the burning of agricultural and organic wastes
  • reducing the impacts of odour from landfills and other commercial and industrial activities
  • preventing fires at high-risk waste and resource recovery activities
  • reducing the impacts of noise from commercial and industrial activities
  • disrupting illicit waste markets and the strengthening of legitimate waste markets.

Reviewed 16 July 2024