Development Licence
Permission summary
- Statutory document ID:
- DL000300079
- Issue date:
- Wed 21 Jan 2026
- Expiry date:
- Fri 21 Jan 2028
- Status:
- Active
- Activity site:
- 200 Johnstons Rd Forge Creek VIC 3875 AU
Permission holder
Name | Address |
|---|---|
Name EAST GIPPSLAND SHIRE COUNCIL | Address 273 MAIN ST, BAIRNSDALE VIC 3875, AU |
Activity
View a list of all activities EPA regulates.
Transaction | Status |
|---|---|
Transaction A07a (Organic waste processing - large) | Status Issued |
More permission details
Learn more about permission conditions.
CodeDescriptionCodeDL_C01DescriptionCommissioning activities must be undertaken in accordance with the commissioning plan approved by the Authority.CodeDL_C02DescriptionYou must immediately notify the Authority by calling 1300 EPA VIC (1300 372 842) in the event of: a) A discharge, emission or deposit which gives rise to, or may give rise to, actual or potential harm to human health or the environment; b) A malfunction, breakdown or failure of risk control measures at the site which could reasonably be expected to give rise to actual or potential harm to human health or the environment; or c) Any breach of the licence.CodeDL_C03DescriptionConstruction and commissioning must not cause or result in any breach of any permission issued by the Authority for the permission activity, except where authorised by a condition of this licence.CodeDL_C04DescriptionDuring the commissioning period, you must not : (a) use any contact water once the pasteurisation process has started i.e. contact water can only be used during the initial batching phase; or (b) accept biosolids, animal mortalities or manure as feedstock.CodeDL_C05Description1. You must develop a risk management and monitoring program for your activities which: (a) identifies all the risks of harm to human health and the environment which may arise from the activities you are engaging in at your activity site; (b) clearly defines your environmental performance objectives; (c) clearly defines your risk control performance objectives; (d) describes how the environmental and risk control performance objectives are being achieved; (e) identifies and describes how you will continue to eliminate or minimise the risks in 1(a) (above) so far as reasonably practicable; and (f) describes how the information collated in compliance with this clause, is or will be disseminated, used or otherwise considered by you or any other entity. 2. The risk management and monitoring program must be: (a) documented in writing; (b) signed by a duly authorised officer of the licensed entity (c) made available to the Authority on request.CodeDL_C07DescriptionWithin 60 calendar days of the completion of the approved activities, you must provide to EPA a written report that summarises the activities undertaken and includes: (a) Commissioning Completion Report that summarises the results of all commissioning including proof of performance activities, results of all environmental monitoring during commissioning and management plans to be developed informed by commissioning activities. This includes: (i) Laboratory reports for matured compost products generated during commissioning which must be National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) accredited and in accordance with Australian Standard 4454-2012 Composts, soil conditions and mulches; (ii) Odour Monitoring Results Report for the commissioning phase prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced odour specialist; (iii) Dust Monitoring Results Report for the commissioning phase prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced air quality specialist; (iv) Noise Monitoring Results Report for the commissioning phase prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced acoustic consultant confirming that the noise control measures implemented are effective; and (v) Water Quality Monitoring Results Report for the commissioning phase, prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced water quality specialist, for contact water, surface water and groundwater monitoring.CodeDL_C08DescriptionVisible emissions to air other than steam must not be discharged from the activity site.CodeDL_C09DescriptionYou must not accept or store more than 25,000 tonnes per annum (nor store more than 25,000 tonnes of waste at your site at any given time) of wastes at the activity site for the duration of this permission.CodeDL_C10DescriptionYou must ensure that: a) Only waste of a type shown in Appendix 4 of this approval is accepted at the activity site; and b) If it is identified that any waste has been received at the activity site that is of a type not shown in Appendix 4 in contravention of paragraph a) above, such waste must be placed in a designated and sign-posted temporary storage area and sent for disposal to a site authorised by the Authority to receive such waste within 21 days of the date it was received.CodeDL_C12DescriptionWaste from the activity site must not be discharged or disposed of to the environment except in accordance with this permission and with any other permission issued by the Authority that may relate to the activity site.CodeDL_G01DescriptionA copy of this licence must be kept at the site and be easily accessible to persons who are engaging in an activity conducted at the site. Information regarding the requirements of the licence and the Act duties must be included in site induction and training information.CodeDL_G02DescriptionThe development East Gippsland Regional Composting Facility (proposed in APP041739) must be constructed and commissioned in accordance with the listed approved plans and documents: Development Licence Application Report (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix A: Site Figures (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix B: Business Case (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix C: Odour Assessment (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix D: Noise Assessment (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix E: Fire Risk Management (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix F: Ecological Assessment (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix G: Greenhouse Gas Assessment (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix H: Contact Water Management (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix I: Environment Management Plan (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix J: Stakeholder Engagement Plan (submitted on 31/10/25) Appendix K: Maturation Pad Design (submitted on 31/10/25) in accordance with the listed approved plans and documents: Request for Further Information Response Table (submitted on 15/10/25) Waste Acceptance Procedure (submitted on 15/10/25) Development Licence Application Form (submitted on 01/04/25) Town Planning Report (dated 12/11/25 submitted on 14/01/26). In the event of any inconsistency between the approved documents and the conditions of this permission, the conditions of this permission shall prevail.CodeDL_G03DescriptionSubject to the following conditions, this development licence allows you to: Construct (and then commission) the East Gippsland Regional Composting Facility for processing 25,000 tonnes per annum of Garden Organics (GO) and mixed Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) using an aerobic composting and open windrow maturation process consisting of: (a) Site office, weighbridge and vehicle parking areas; (b) Drop-off station and sorting facility; (c) Covered aeration system (compost pasteurisation pad); (d) Compost maturation pad (open air windrows); (e) Screening and stockpile storage areas; (f) Contact water dam (draining from maturation pad); (g) Clean water dams (one existing and one proposed); (h) Firefighting water tanks and sprinkler system; (i) Main drainage culvert running along boundary (north to south); (j) Hardstand driveway; (k) Mobile plant and equipment i.e. excavator(s), wheel loader(s), windrow turner, screen(s); and (l) Ancillary infrastructure, systems and equipment to support the above main components of the project as presented in the development licence application and accompanying documents listed in condition DL_G02.CodeDL_G04DescriptionThis permission does not take effect until a copy of any planning permit or amendment to a planning scheme required under the Planning and Environment Act 1987 (Vic) and related planning schemes has been provided to the Authority by the applicant.CodeDL_G05DescriptionThis permission expires: (a) on the issue or amendment of an operating licence or permit relating to all activities covered by this permission; (b) when the Authority advises in writing that all activities covered by this permission have been satisfactorily completed and the issue or amendment of an operating licence or permit is not required; or c) on the expiry date listed on the front page of this permission.CodeDL_G07DescriptionYou must: (a) develop and maintain a decommissioning plan that is in accordance with the current decommissioning guidelines published by the Authority; (b) provide the decommissioning plan to the Authority upon request; (c) supply to the Authority an updated detailed decommissioning plan 180 business days prior to commencement of decommissioning, if you propose to divest a section of the licensed site, cease part or all of the licensed activity or reduce the basis upon which the licence was granted to a point where licensing is no longer required; and (d) decommission the licensed site in accordance with the detailed decommissioning plan, to the satisfaction of the Authority and within any reasonable timeframe which may be specified by the Authority.CodeDL_R01DescriptionAt least 60 calendar days before the commencement of any commissioning, you must provide to the Authority plans/reports that include(s): A Commissioning Plan including following documents for approval: (a) Details of commissioning and proof of performance activities to verify that the performance objective of each process unit are met; (b) Commissioning methodology (with at least 3 batches) to demonstrate production of mature compost product with feedstock, final maturation pad design and all related sampling and monitoring of feedstock pasteurisation, maturation and final product; (c) Waste receival and decontamination procedure to be included in the site’s Environmental Management Plan; (d) Details of the composting process management system including how key parameters for composting will be met; (e) Odour Monitoring and Management Plan prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced odour specialist, in accordance with the EPA Publication 1883: Guidance for assessing odour (June 2022). This must include a detailed campaign of odour surveillance to verify the risk profile of the site focussed on assessing odour from all relevant sources onsite of sufficient robustness to satisfy the risk of harm is low; (f) Details of testing of PFAS in composted products (in addition to contact water testing) to understand the PFAS profile in the materials being generated at the site; (g) An updated Waste Acceptance Plan including acceptance criteria and procedure; (h) Stockpile Management Plan covering how the stockpiles will be stored to minimise risks of harm to human health and the environment including prevent fires (i.e. layout, dimensions and separation distances between stockpiles and to the site boundaries to minimise fire spread) and monitoring and inspection procedures also covering temperature and moisture level management; (i) Noise Monitoring and Management Plan prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced acoustic consultant including details of contingency measures and noise complaints handling procedures; (j) Dust Monitoring and Management Plan providing details of the dust monitoring equipment to be installed at the site to identify any non-compliances during commissioning and future operations, including details of the dust monitoring program to be implemented and contingency measures to be applied in the event of non-compliance; (k) Water Quality Monitoring and Management Plan to monitor contact water, stormwater and groundwater including the parameters, location and regularity of monitoring; (l) Contingency Plan for Contact Water should it become anaerobic using management measures such as prevention measures (e.g. reduced detention time), aeration, mixing and treatment (e.g. biocide dosing); and (m) Fire Safety Management Plan that include(s): . (i) fire safety objectives of the facility; (ii) descriptions of fire prevention systems including as-installed engineering controls and operational procedures that minimise ignition sources or fire ignition scenarios including bushfire and grassfire prevention measures; (iii) descriptions of all as-installed fire detection and protection systems including references to their standards of installation (e.g. fire hydrants to AS 2419.1); (iv) cause-and-effect matrix for emergency operations/shutdowns of various process equipment to minimise the risk of a fire event; (v) cause-and-effect matrix for fire mode operations of the fire detection and protection systems of the facility; and (vi) a firewater containment plan.CodeDL_R02DescriptionYou must not commence commissioning of the operating components of the development activities until you have received the Authority's written approval of the plans/reports which is required pursuant to condition(s) DL_C05 and DL_R01.CodeDL_W01DescriptionAt least 60 calendar days prior to commencing construction of the following components of the development activity, you must provide to the Authority for approval: (a) A final updated plant design and specifications, including: a site layout plan; drawings and schematics; details of storage areas, access roads, and a summary design report demonstrating how the final selected plant design and specifications minimise potential risks to human health and the environment, so far as reasonably practicable including: (i) Details about description and design of the composting bunkers along with generated leachate management; (ii) Details of the telemetry monitoring system and how the system is designed to monitor process parameters such as temperature, moisture, airflow etc within the bunker; (iii) Detailed bunker design including pollution control measures covering: (1) how air will be blown to the bunkers (one or several blowers); (2) total number, length and position of temperature, oxygen and moisture probes; (3) odour control system; and (4) infrastructure to include drainage channels allowing the pasteurised contact water to drain by gravity to the contact water dam and the unpasteurised contact water to drain by gravity to a separate, undefined tank; (iv) An updated (following detailed design freeze) Noise Impact Assessment consistent with the Noise Impact Assessment (30/10/25), Part 5.3 of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021 and EPA Publication 1826.4: Noise Protocol prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced consultant including: (1) the predicted noise level results (in particular low frequency and cumulative noise from other commercial, industrial and trade premise) is no worse than that assessed and considered acceptable now; and (2) details of the final noise control program to be implemented; (v) Stormwater Management Plan prepared by a suitably qualified and experienced consultant covering water diversion, containment (including adequacy of design and contingencies), water quality testing, water balance calculations, top up water source and volume, contact water management and firewater containment; (vi) Drainage Plan showing the segregation of clean stormwater (non-contact water) from contaminated water (contact water) explaining how each will be managed separately; (vii) An updated (following detailed design freeze) Environment Management Plan addressing the design changes during the final detailed design of the composting facility; (viii) An updated (following detailed design freeze) Contact Water Management Plan addressing the design changes during the final detailed design of the composting facility; (ix) An updated (following detailed design freeze) Trigger Action Response Plan for contact water and stormwater management to define operational and environmental thresholds (e.g. water level alarms, water quality exceedances, odour indicators), associated actions (e.g. pump-out, containment, restricted use), and nominated responsible personnel for managing these issues; (x) Solid and Liquid Storage Detailed Design (including incoming and outgoing waste and quarantine areas) to meet Best Available Techniques and Technologies; (xi) Groundwater Monitoring and Management Plan setting out the proposed groundwater monitoring program (including the number and location of groundwater monitoring bores and the monitoring frequency) to establish baseline conditions and describe what actions are proposed for the commissioning and operational phase to minimise risks to groundwater; (xii) Fire Safety Detailed Design information (also meeting Country Fire Authority (CFA) requirements as appropriate) including: (1) a Fire Safety Study (in accordance with NSW Hazardous Industry Planning Advisory Paper No 2) also considering where the fires originate from the landscape; (2) a facility wide description of fire prevention, detection (including thermal detection), warning and protection systems (engineered controls), supported by design drawings; (3) a firewater supply of greater than 432 kL provided onsite (greater than 288 kL must be provided in static water tanks with CFA fittings and the remainder may be provided in dams or process/storage ponds where it meets requirements of Class A recycled water as determined by the local water authority); (4) details of how firefighting water will be contained; and (5) a site layout design to assist firefighting including: (a) non-combustible fire breaks (e.g. constructed of mineral earth or non-combustible mulch such as crushed rock) at the following locations: • the site perimeter (or from screening vegetation) to a distance of greater than 10 metres; • the perimeter of the windrows to a distance of greater than 10 metres; • between windrow groups; and (b) a minimum of two site access points for emergency vehicles; and (xiii) Emergency Response Plan covering likely emergency incidents including fire risks to be prepared in consultation with the Country Fire Authority and risk of uncontrolled discharges to surface waters.CodeDL_W02DescriptionYou must notify the Authority in writing when the development activity authorised by this permission has commenced.CodeDL_W03DescriptionYou must notify the Authority when the construction associated with the development activities covered by this approval has been completed.CodeDL_W04DescriptionYou must not commission or use the operating components of the development activities without the written approval of the Authority.CodeDL_W08DescriptionYou must install : (a) a real-time odour monitoring system (with multiple real-time monitoring devices suitably located) to proactively identify odour nuisance issues; (b) HDPE and compacted clay lining in all contact water storage ponds; (c) early warning and automated systems (e.g. level sensors with alarms for both duty and standby personnel) to minimise risks of uncontrolled discharges to surface waters from overtopping water storages; . (d) minimum freeboard of 0.5 metres for all tank, pond and dam storages; (e) equipment with low noise levels for the composting facility; (f) acoustic screening and enclosures on all significant noise sources; . (g) noise control measures on mobile equipment e.g. mufflers, broad band reversing alarms; (h) broadband reversing alarms on all mobile plants at the site; (i) groundwater monitoring bores (as identified in the Groundwater Monitoring and Management Plan); and . (j) any other pollution control and monitoring measures identified in the development licence application and supporting documents.CodeDL_W10DescriptionYou must implement all liquid storage containment and handling measures in accordance with “Liquid storage and handling guidelines” (EPA Publication 1698, released June 2018).CodeDL_W13DescriptionDuring construction, you must ensure that all activities are carried out in accordance with approved documents under DL_W01 as appropriate.Learn more about waste acceptance regulations.
CodeDescriptionCodeK210DescriptionSolid commercial food wastes, not otherwise specified in "Schedule 5—Waste Classification" of the Environment Protection Regulations 2021CodeW_4DescriptionMunicipal Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) - food and garden waste from source separated kerbside collection of waste by local governmentCodeW_5DescriptionMunicipal green waste - vegetation, garden, landscaping, and natural fibrous wastesIn the event of a discrepancy between the conditions listed on this page and the linked statutory document, the statutory document prevails.
No performance statements.