Partnerships, science and innovation

Ongoing

• We use remote sensing, drones and other emerging technologies in our regulatory activities.
• Our in-house Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) capability enhances our ability to collect information via an aerial platform and technologies that previously were unavailable from the ground or via more traditional data collection tools.
• We use our RPAS capability to:
  • capture photographic and video data for regulatory and compliance purposes (including collection of evidence).
  • capture and process spatial imagery as an additional tool and data set to assist in regulatory functions, including waste levy compliance.
• We are enhancing our air monitoring activities in the Swanbank and New Chum industrial areas including rolling out new monitoring equipment and reconfiguring our existing monitoring network in response to community reports about odour.

Complete

The 2023 Progress Report includes details about the delivery of this action.

Ongoing

• We are regularly engaging with a wide range of stakeholders to understand the impacts of PFAS on the community and communicate departmental expectations for the management of PFAS contamination.
• Limits and restrictions have been applied to several activities to ensure PFAS contamination is minimised and managed to protect the community and environment.
• We have published a Regulatory position statement: PFAS in organic material processing (composting). This Regulatory position statement describes how we are managing PFAS contamination in organic waste and compost, and how we will support operators to produce high quality, safe and sustainable compost in Queensland.
• We are actively working with the Australian Government to support the phase out of PFAS in food packaging and other materials to reduce the risk of contamination.
• We are working with the Australian Government and other jurisdictions on the implementation of the Intergovernmental Agreement on a Framework for Responding to PFAS Contamination, including the development of the PFAS National Environmental Management Plan (PFAS NEMP) version 3.0.

Ongoing

• We are assessing applications as they are received and applying the legislation as appropriate.
• An environmental impact statement process has been completed for a trial project aiming to demonstrate the effective permanent storage of captured carbon dioxide.  The environmental regulator determined that the project was not suitable to proceed.
• In June 2024, the Queensland Government introduced a legislative ban on GHG storage activities in the Great Artesian Basin (GAB), in Queensland.  The ban extends to all existing and any future proposals for GHG storage projects in the GAB in Queensland.

Awaiting commencement

Conditions are being added to new environmental authorities for higher risk activities to require real time monitoring by authority holders where necessary.

In progress

• The Digital Environmental Assessment Program aims to digitally transform environmental assessment processes under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). The new process will:
  • streamline approvals
  • integrate systems
  • reduce duplication
  • enable better decision making.
• There are two projects within the program:
  • The Portal and Assessment System which is simplifying and connecting assessment processes/systems. A new referral form and EPBC Act Portals have been developed.
  • The Biodiversity Data Repository project which involves building a national Biodiversity Data Repository (BDR). The BDR will contribute data to both internal and public-facing systems being developed during 2024 and beyond.

In progress

• We are continuing to scope the potential to capture information used in the assessment of major environmental impact statement (considering the current Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 legislative reforms).
• This may involve provision of data into a Commonwealth Biodiversity Data Repository or similar State system, once data standards are in place.

Complete

• The Environmental Protection Act 1994 was amended in 2023 to better facilitate environmental authorities for trial, research or innovative activities, by providing an exclusion from needing to provide certain application information if the applicant for a prescribed environmentally relevant activity can demonstrate that sufficient information about the matter is not available.
• Trial environmental authorities will be issued for a maximum of three years and will lapse after the stated period. The intent is that after the trial environmental authority lapses, the operator will have more information about the likely impacts of the activity and measures for minimising and managing wastes. Consequently, operators should be able to apply for an environmental authority which is not time-limited and provide an application which meets all statutory information requirements.

In progress

• As part of the Digital Environmental Assessment Program, the Australian Government is delivering the Biodiversity Data Repository project.
• This project involves building a national Biodiversity Data Repository (BDR). The BDR will contribute data to both internal and public-facing systems.

Ongoing

• We regularly work with the Australian Government, local government, industry and other stakeholders to inform and improve our regulatory actions.
• We are a principal member of the Heads of EPA Australia and New Zealand (HEPA). HEPA is an informal alliance of environmental regulation leaders from Australia and New Zealand that provides collective leadership across all jurisdictions in Australia and New Zealand to protect the environment and communities.
• We are delivering the Local Government Illegal Dumping Partnership Program to support local government projects that aim to prevent or reduce illegal dumping in hotspot areas. There are now 46 councils that are part of the program.
• Officers within the department are members of the Australasian Environmental Law Enforcement and Regulators network. This allows the officers to participate in capability building and knowledge sharing with other regulators.
• Our officers also participate in functions hosted by the ANZSOG National Regulators Community of Practice (NRCoP). The NRCoP is an active network of public sector regulators from all three levels of government and from every regulatory sector, professional background, role and level of seniority.

Ongoing

• We are committed to further building the capacity and capability of our officers.
• We maintain and develop a range of support materials including procedural guides, forms, templates and technical training materials which are available internally for officer use.
• Guidance materials are also available externally on our website.

Ongoing

• We have an embedded behavioural scientist that provides ongoing and efficient responses to ad hoc needs as well as for strategic and in-depth projects that require behavioural science insights.
• Our embedded behavioural scientist is a member and contributor to behavioural science and communication groups of the Australasian Environmental Law Enforcement and Regulators network and a working member of the DESI Behavioural and Social Science (BASS) Hub. The BASS Hub is an internal community of practice sharing knowledge and resources and delivering behavioural and social science support across the department.

Ongoing

The Queensland Mine Rehabilitation Commissioner publishes a report annually on their website outlining work undertaken as required by legislative requirements, independent from the department's work program.  We provide data from annual returns to assist the Queensland Mine Rehabilitation Commissioner in preparing the report.

Complete

• The department engaged a third-party supplier to provide a benchmark comparing our approach to transparency to other regulators and help us prepare a transparency roadmap.
• We were consistently ranked as “Good” or “Best Practice” on all 5 metrics and was ahead of most other state regulators.
• The department updated its Open Data Strategy in March 2024.
• The department continues to be one of the agencies that contributes the most to the Open Data Portal.
• We continue to expand upon the Public Register Portal, making more information available online 24/7.