Regulations
Regulations are primarily used to deal with matters in detail. Regulations are also made to control discharges to the environment that are not readily licensed.
Information on the following regulations is available:
- Environment Protection (Environment and Resource Efficiency Plans) Regulations 2007
- Environment Protection (Fees) Regulations 2001
- Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007
- Environment Protection (Distribution of Landfill Levy) Regulations 2002
- Environment Protection (Industrial Waste Resource) Regulations 2009.
- Environment Protection (Residential Noise) Regulations 1997
- Environment Protection (Vehicle Emissions) Regulations 2003
- Pollution of Waters by Oil and Noxious Substances Regulations 2002
- Environment Protection (Ships' Ballast Water) Regulations 2006
Environment Protection (Environment and Resource Efficiency Plans) Regulations 2007
From 1 January 2008 all commercial and industrial sites in Victoria that use more than 100 TJ of energy and/or 120 ML of water in a financial year need to prepare a plan that identifies actions to reduce energy and water use and waste generation. Each site that exceeds one or more thresholds must register with EPA, prepare a plan, implement actions with a payback period of three year or less, and report on their performance annually.
The Environment Protection (Environment and Resource Efficiency Plans) Regulations 2007
are now available online at the
Victorian Law Today Library. Hard copies (paper) will also be available from the Information Victoria Bookshop and for viewing at the EPA Victoria Library.
Environment Protection (Fees) Regulations 2001
The Environment Protection (Fees) Regulations 2001 set the fees payable under the Environment Protection Act 1970, including those for works approvals, licences and permits that are outlined in these regulations. The fee structure for licences is designed to provide incentive for licence holders to reduce their emissions. Fees also aid in recovering administrative costs associated with the issuing, monitoring and enforcement of licences.
An EPA publication on the Environment Protection (Fees) Regulations 2001 
(Adobe PDF file, 91KB) is also available.
The Environment Protection (Fees) Regulations 2001 are available online at the Victorian Law Today Library. Hard copies (paper) are available for viewing at the EPA Victoria Library.
Get more information about this topic.
Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007
Under the Environment Protection Act 1970, premises which have the potential for significant environmental impact are subject to works approvals (for construction or modification of facilities or processes) and/or licences (for operating conditions, discharge limits, monitoring and reporting requirements).
The Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007 prescribe the premises that are subject to works approval and/or licensing by EPA, and provide for exemptions in certain circumstances. They provide a means to effectively manage these premises in a transparent way, which ensures an adequate level of community confidence is maintained.
The Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007 are available online at the
Victorian
Legislations and Parliamentary Documents site. 
Hard copies (paper) are available from the Information Victoria Bookshop and for viewing at the EPA Victoria Library.
The Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises) Regulations 2007 were developed and released over the course of 2007. By reforming the previous framework, the new regulations have achieved greater benefits for business, society and environment at a lesser cost.
In line with the requirements of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994 a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) was published for public comment and assessed as adequate by the Victorian Competition and Efficiency Commission (VCEC).
Download the Regulatory Impact Statement
In the course of preparing the RIS a Standard Cost Model (SCM) was developed in accordance with the Victorian Guide to Regulation. The purpose of the SCM is to assess the administrative burden (being the costs associated with demonstrating compliance with the Regulation) placed on business by the Scheduled Premises regulations.
An internal review of EPA's regulatory requirements discovered errors in the initial SCM calculation of the Scheduled Premises Regulations. The reduction in administrative burden achieved by the new regulations, initially miscalculated as $1.5 milllion per annum, is in reality $2.9 million per annum. A corrected calculation (PDF Doc) has been completed by KPMG and assessed by the VCEC (PDF Doc) as adequate.
What are the major changes in the Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007, compared with the 1996 Regulations?
The Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 1996 have now been replaced by the Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemptions) Regulations 2007.
The bulk of sites that required a licence and works approval under the 1996 Regulations still require those under the 2007 Regulations. However, there are a number of new categories, mostly to clarify existing requirements, and a number of descriptions have been amended to reflect changes over time and ensure that the continued focus is on areas of significant environmental risks.
The tables below outline the major changes in the Regulations. Further detail about the specific changes can be found in the Regulatory Impact Statement for the Environment Protection (Scheduled Premises and Exemption) Regulations 2007.
New Categories
| Category | Description | Works approval, Licence, Financial assurance |
|---|---|---|
| Energy from Waste | Premises which recover energy from waste at a rated capacity of at least 1 megawatt. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Container washing | Premises receiving bulk transport containers for the purpose of internal washing or cleansing where the containers have contained - either prescribed industrial waste or dangerous goods. | Require works approval and licence. Require financial assurance. |
| Carbon capture and storage | Premises with facilities for the capture, separation, processing, or storage of waste carbon dioxide for the purpose of geological disposal. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Long term management of contaminated soil and groundwater | Long-term management of soil and/or groundwater contamination where a notice has been issued under the Act. | Exempt from works approval and licence. Require financial assurance. |
| Water desalination plants | Premises at which salt is removed from water for potable or other uses that have a design capacity to process more than 1 megalitre per day of feed water. | Require works approval and licence. |
Categories that are a clarification of existing requirements
| Category | Description | Works approval, Licence, Financial assurance |
|---|---|---|
| On-site containment of contaminated soil | On-site retention of contaminated soil on premises that are designed to or have a capacity to hold 1000m3 in an engineered facility. | Require works approval. Exemption from licence. Require financial assurance. |
| Tunnel ventilation systems | Road tunnel ventilation systems. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Off-site industrial wastewater | Premises on or from which industrial wastewater effluent not generated at the premises, exceeding a design or actual flow rate of 5000 litres per day, is discharge or deposited. | Require works approval and licence. |
New exemptions
| Category | New exemption criteria |
|---|---|
| Small wastewater treatment plants | New exemption from licence provided for sites discharging less than 100,000 litres per day solely to land in accordance with EPA guidance. Works approval still required. |
| Abattoirs | New exemption from licence provided for sites discharging less than 100,000 litres per day solely to land in accordance with EPA guidance. Works approval still required. |
| Small gas fired boilers and power stations | New exemption from licence provided for gas fired boilers and turbines of a rated capacity of not more than 20MW. Works approval still required. |
Substantially modified categories
| Category | Description | Works approval, Licence, Financial assurance |
|---|---|---|
| Composting | Premises with aerobic or anaerobic composting which is designed to or has a capacity to process more than 100 tonnes of waste per month. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Animal skin tanning | Animal skin tanning, or re-tanning works. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Milk Processing | Milk processing or dairy product manufacturing works, which are designed to produce at least 200 tonnes per year of product(s). | Require works approval and licence. |
| Edible oil | Edible oil or fat processing works, where seed crushing, solvent extraction or edible oil or fat deodorising takes place, which are designed to produce at least 2000 tonnes per year of product(s). | Require works approval and licence. |
| Textiles | Textile manufacturing and processing works including carpet manufacturing, wool scouring, textile bleaching, textile dyeing and textile finishing works. | Require works approval and licence. Exemption from licence for premises not undertaking finishing step with chemical treatment. |
| Pulp and paper mills | Paper pulp mills, being works in which wood, wood products, waste paper or other cellulose materials are processed to form pulp, paper or cardboard. | Require works approval and licence. Exemption from licence for premises producing less than 30,000 tonnes per year of pulp, paper or cardboard. |
| Printing | Printing works emitting more than 100kgs per day of volatile organic compounds. | Require works approval and licence. |
| Bulk storage | Bulk storage facilities which have a total design capacity of more than 1.0 megalitre (in tanks exceeding 10,000 litre capacity) and which store compounds of carbon (including petroleum products or oil) which – (i) contain at least one carbon to carbon bond, as well as derivatives of methane; and (ii) are liquid at Standard Temperature and Pressure; or (iii) contain any substance classified as a class 3 indicator in State environment protection policy (Air Quality Management). (Note: point (iii) above is to be read subject to the capacity requirements in the description). |
Require works approval and licence. Require financial assurance. |
| General emissions to air | Definition changes:
|
Require works approval and licence. |
Removed Categories
| Current Schedule Category |
|---|
| Category 1(b): On-Site Management of Specific Waste |
| Category 8(b): Concrete Batching Plants |
There are also changes to the general exemptions provisions in the Regulations, particularly with respect to emissions of noise.
Where can I find further information?
Contact the EPA Information Centre or nearest EPA regional office for further information on the applicability of the regulations.