Our licences have conditions. Some conditions require a decommissioning plan for when the prescribed activity ends. For operating licences, this is condition OL_G7.
You need to provide your decommissioning plan to us if we ask for it.
When you stop conducting the prescribed activity, you must provide us with your final decommissioning plan.
You may need to submit an initial decommissioning plan as part of a development licence application or development licence exemption application.
‘Decommissioning’ is removing risks of harm to human health and the environment from plant, equipment and activity site areas no longer used. This includes:
- part or complete ending of activities
- part or complete removal of equipment, structures or wastes
- relinquishing or changing land use of some or all of an activity site area.
Plan for decommissioning
You should progressively plan for decommissioning as your licence activity site requirements or knowledge change. Provide an updated decommissioning plan if you propose changes to existing licensed activities.
We require a financial assurance as a condition of certain licences. We consider decommissioning plans when considering the form and amount of financial assurance. For more information, visit Financial assurance for permissions and contaminated land management.
Specific decommission requirements for landfills and extractive industries
Landfills and extractive industries, or mines, have specific decommission requirements.
Landfills
If your operating licence is for a landfill, you need to complete:
- a rehabilitation plan for the landfill area – licence condition OL_L22, and
- a decommissioning plan for the remaining licensed areas on the site.
For guidance on landfill rehabilitation plan obligations, visit Landfills.
Extractive industries or mines
If your operating licence is for an extractive industry or mine, you may also be regulated under the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990 (MRSDA).
The MRSDA may require a rehabilitation plan and MRSDA Bond. If so, your decommissioning plan does not need to address the elements covered by MRSDA requirements.
Risk management and control
Ending a prescribed activity can pose risks to human health and environment. You’re expected to eliminate or reduce these risks so far as reasonably practicable. This includes understanding the specific risks and their controls for your industry or activity.
You can eliminate or reduce decommissioning risks during the lifetime of the activity by:
- following your risk management and monitoring program – condition OL_G5
- complying with your licence conditions
- meeting the general environmental duty
- meeting other legal duties, including the duty to manage contaminated land
- following and maintaining a risk management process.
Decommissioning requires a risk management process where:
- the risks are identified and assessed
- appropriate environmental control measures are identified.
This is done through a detailed site investigation. Site investigations must be done by a qualified person.
A detailed site investigation usually requires the assessment of land, soil vapour and groundwater. It can uncover legacy or historical pollution and contamination.
If pollution and contamination are detected, more work may be required under a statutory environmental audit.
If pollution needs to be cleaned up or remediated, we issue a remedial notice. The notice specifies decommissioning requirements and timeframes you must comply with.
Minimum requirements for decommissioning plans
As a minimum requirement, your decommissioning plan must include:
- how you intend to end prescribed activities
- how you'll reinstate the environment to the condition it was in before starting the prescribed activities
- post-activity land uses
- the measures you'll take to manage risks to environment and human health associated with decommissioning activities
- the measures you'll take to comply with the general environment duty, duty to manage contaminated land, and waste duties during decommissioning
- the measures you'll take to comply with any other relevant licence condition
- any other relevant statutory or legislative requirements.
Required decommissioning plan information
Initially, the information in your decommissioning plan may be brief and general. The level of detail develops as your operations change over time and/or as your knowledge grows.
Your final plan should be complete and comprehensive. It needs to cover the entire activity site area as shown on your licence.
Keep your decommissioning plan up to date, including when licensed activities are expanded, stopped, or if land is divested. Divesting of land includes:
- sale (if owner)
- lease (if owner), or
- use for a different purpose that does not need an operating licence.
To help us assess your plan, it must follow this structure:
Plan identification
Provide a unique title and identifier of your decommissioning plan.
Background information
Provide relevant background information, including setting out the purpose of your decommissioning plan.
Licensed activities
Summarise all activities you’re allowed to conduct under your licence.
Condition of your existing site
Describe the site condition – existing or proposed:
- main buildings, including building fabric
- operational areas
- storage areas, including bulk above and below-ground storage structures
- administrative areas
- site surfaces – for example, concrete, asphalt, unpaved, grassed
- internal roadways
- surface drainage
- trade waste infrastructure
- other structures.
Include the location of activities likely to pose a risk to the environment or human health. For example:
- chemical storage areas
- chemical processing areas
- underground service tanks
- waste storage areas
- wastewater treatment ponds
- bunded areas.
Describe land or groundwater monitoring locations and impacts
Include a site layout plan showing and labelling these listed structures. It should match your licence activity site plan or part of your plan.
Planned life of the site
Identify in what stage of the site's lifecycle your licenced operations are. For example:
- Is the site being established from a greenfield site?
- Is it a redeveloped brownfield site? If so, what activities were conducted at the site and when?
- Are there any baseline assessments on the condition of the soil, surface water and groundwater?
- Is it an ongoing use of the site? Identify when the operations began.
- Do plans for modification of the operations consider the potential implications on the eventual decommissioning of that plant?
- Is there a planned end-of-life for your site operations?
- What due diligence processes are in place if divesting part or all of the site?
Condition OL_G7(c) of your licence applies if you divest a section or area covered by your operating licence.
Consequences of your activities
Your site decommissioning plan must consider:
- how you'll comply with the general environmental duty, waste duties, and contaminated land duties
- your site risk management and monitoring program – condition OL_G5
- how you'll follow a risk management process to identify and manage risks to human health and the environment posed by your activities
- how you'll monitor the condition of the site to check that your risk minimisation controls are effective
- how you'll review and audit your monitoring results and revise your risk minimisation controls to address shortfalls.
Expectations
Explain how you plan to leave the site once you no longer occupy it, or the post-decommissioning land use. Provide:
- the environmental values to be protected – uses, attributes or functions
- a preliminary schedule of site structures to be kept, and areas of the site to be cleared (if known)
- how you'll clean up the site for its intended use
- consideration of our requirements – for example, permission conditions.
Site closure (partial or complete)
The level of detail in your final decommissioning plan should reflect the nature and extent of your operations. Include in your final decommissioning plan:
- management systems
- decommissioning schedule of activities and timelines
- roles and responsibilities
- decommissioning strategy
- the timeline for applications for amendment or surrender of permission due to changes in activities
- stakeholder management plans – information on engagements undertaken with stakeholders relevant to decommissioning and rehabilitation, including a record of the engagement undertaken to date and a strategy for ongoing engagement
- contractor management
- hazards and their control
- measures to comply with applicable duties, including the general environmental duty, waste duties, duty to notify of contaminated land, and duty to manage contaminated land
- selection and justification of preferred decommissioning strategy
- environmental protection
- emergency and contingency planning
- occupational health and safety and environmental protection requirements
- progressive site closure management – for example aftercare and complete closure
- financial provisioning for closure and the details of closure costing methodology, clearly documented assumptions and uncertainties
- document change control table containing:
- a revision summary table outlining all changes made in the reviewed decommissioning plan
- a table documenting how the knowledge gaps identified in the revision of the decommissioning plan have been addressed, as well as any new gaps identified
- where relevant:
- timetable for completion of a detailed site investigation
- waste treatment technologies
- waste disposal methods and administrative requirements
- validation monitoring and decommissioning release criteria.
Decommissioning strategy
Include in your decommissioning strategy where relevant:
- applicable acts, regulations and standards
- progressive assessment and investigation to inform strategy development
- recovery and disposal of unwanted stored or stockpiled materials – for example waste or product
- extraction and on-site treatment – if necessary – of waste, applying the waste hierarchy
- transport and disposal of wastes
- removal and disposal of unwanted equipment
- decontamination, dismantling or demolition, removal and disposal of buildings and structures
- removal and disposal of in-ground equipment and services
- remediation of contaminated land and waters
- management of environmental hazards such as air emissions, dust, noise, vibration, visual amenity, odour
- land reclamation and stabilisation measures
- clean-up plans and environmental audit requirements
- verification of completed remediation.
Submit your detailed decommissioning plan for review
Submit your final decommissioning plan for review to contact@epa.vic.gov.au marked attention to your EPA regional office.
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