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Controlled waste leaving Victoria
Under the Environment Protection Regulations 2021, you must have a permit to move solid reportable priority waste (other than waste tyres) out of Victoria.
The permit is for Scheduled Activity A12 (Transporting waste out of Victoria). Waste consigners can apply for the permit through the EPA Portal. Section 28(d) of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021 sets what EPA considers when it assesses an application. You must also:
- have a consignment authorisation issued by the destination State or Territory
- make sure the waste transporter has the appropriate approval to transport the waste.
The waste movement must be recorded using the electronic waste transport record system of the State or Territory that is receiving the waste. A hard copy of the waste record must also be kept with the waste during transit.
EPA Victoria no longer sells paper waste transport certificates for interstate transport.
Controlled waste entering Victoria
The proper way to move controlled waste into Victoria from interstate is managed under the National Environment Protection Measure (NEPM) for the Movement of Controlled Waste Between States and Territories.
Most reportable priority waste is controlled waste. If you consign controlled waste for transport into Victoria, you must have a permit under the Environment Protection Regulations 2021.
The permit is for Scheduled Activity A11 (Transporting waste into Victoria). A waste generator, or a person authorised to act on behalf of the producer by the State or Territory where the controlled waste is produced, can apply for the permit on the EPA Portal. Section 28(c) of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021 (the Regulations) sets what EPA considers when it assesses an application.
You must also make sure that the transporter has the appropriate approval to transport the waste.
Waste tracker
You must use EPA Victoria’s Waste Tracker to report the movement of controlled waste entering Victoria. You will need to sign up to the EPA Portal and link your individual account to your business by following these instructions.
Waste Transporters
If you are a waste transporter you must:
- make sure your vehicle has the appropriate approvals to transport the waste. It needs to be approved by the correct environmental protection body for the State or Territory that the waste will be moving to. It also needs to be approved by EPA Victoria.
- at the time of pick-up, provide to or confirm with the controlled waste producer the relevant information on the waste record
- make sure all required documentation is kept in the cabin of the vehicle. This includes:
- a printed copy of the waste record
- a copy of your transport approval
- an ‘initial emergency response guide’ card.
The general environmental duty applies to waste transport. The waste duties also apply to management of waste.
Waste transporters must also comply with their waste transport approval requirements and be aware of national requirements for waste transport. This includes:
- the PCB Management Plan issued by ANZECC
- the National ‘Code of Practice on how to safely remove asbestos’
- the Australian Standard for the Management of Clinical and Related Waste
- Australian and New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 5377:2013 Collection, storage, transport and treatment of end-of-life electrical and electronic equipment.
How we assess applications
When we receive a complete application, EPA will issue or refuse:
- A11 Permits within 15 business days
- A12 Permits within 42 business days.
When determining to issue an A11 permit, EPA will consider:
- whether the facility receiving the waste is appropriately licensed or approved by EPA and has capacity to receive the waste
- all relevant Victorian and interstate environment protection policies, statutory policies and legislation relating to the generation, transport, treatment or disposal of waste
- whether there is an appropriate facility for the reuse, recycling, treatment or disposal of the waste in the State the waste is coming from.
When determining to issue an A12 permit, EPA must consider:
- the type of waste being assessed and how best practice disposal or deposit of this type of waste may occur in Victoria
- engineering specifications of the facility at where the waste would be taken to interstate compared with the type of waste being assessed and how best practice disposal or deposit of this type of waste may happen in Victoria
- if moving the waste could achieve a better environmental outcome as set out in Section 18 of the Environment Protection Act 2017.
EPA may request further information from you to support the application and may consult the interstate jurisdiction as part of its assessment.
EPA assessors make informed decisions about which criteria are relevant to the substance to be transported. Each application is assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Two case study examples show how the process works.
Case study one
Company X applies to EPA to transport soil contaminated only with asbestos. EPA assessors compare landfill to cover practices and daily cover depths. Other elements such as leachate management systems might not be relevant in this case.
Case study two
Company Y applies to EPA to transport soil contaminated with asbestos and leachable materials. EPA assessors compare landfill cover practices and daily cover depths. Other factors such as landfill performance standard (liner and leachate collection systems) are also considered.
Authorisations under the previous Act
If you had a consignment authorisation to transport controlled waste into or out of Victoria under the Environment Protection Act 1970 which hadn’t expired on 30 June 2021, it was automatically transitioned to an A11 or A12 permit, respectively.
You don’t need to take any further action to activate or transition this permit until its original expiry date or on 1 July 2022, whichever is sooner. You will need to set up an EPA Portal account to use Waste Tracker for waste entering Victoria.
Before your transitioned permission expires, you will receive an email advising you that your permit will expire and advice on how to renew your permission. Permissions are renewed via an application in the EPA Portal.
Transport permission types
Waste transporters must have the relevant permit or registration from EPA to transport specific types of waste into Victoria. For reportable priority waste, this is an:
- A10a (Reportable priority waste (transport) - high risk) permit (for waste codes B100, E100, G100 or R100) or
- A10b (Reportable priority waste (transport) - other) registration.
If you have a waste transport permission issued by another State or Territory, you need to apply for an exemption for transporting reportable priority waste in Victoria through the EPA portal. You will not be able to use Waste Tracker as a transporter and will need to complete waste records by following the instructions above.
Regulations 80 and 81 of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021 set out what’s required for the movement of controlled waste into Victoria.
Exemptions to permissions for transporting reportable priority waste
If you have a valid authorisation issued by another State or Territory to transport reportable priority waste, you may be able to get a permission exemption from EPA. The exemption is issued under s68 of Environment Protection Act 2017 and covers an A10a permit or an A10b registration.
You can apply for the exemption online through the EPA portal using the exemption application form 1026. The exemption is issued to the waste transporter.
Section 31 of the of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021 sets what EPA considers when assessing an application.
Exemptions to the requirement to report movements of wastes that are controlled waste issued by another State or Territory do not apply to interstate movements of waste.
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Reviewed 8 September 2022
