Introduction
Waste Management Association of Australia (WMAA) WA Submission on
Department of Environment Regulation Environmental Standard: composting
This Submission is being made on behalf of the Waste Management Association of Australia (WA Branch) and Compost WA-a special interest group of WMAA members involved in recyclir)g organic wastes. The Association is the peak body for waste management professionals in Australia and has nearly 300 members in WA. These
members include Local Governments, consultants, waste and recycling processors, landfill operators and others with an interest in the Waste industry. Given the diverse range of interests of the members of WMAA, sometimes consensus cannot be reached on key issues. Where this is the case, these varying views are simply presented for consideration.
This Submission identifies key issues the industry has identified with the Department of Environment Regulation Environmental Standard: com posting, provides example of where they occur in the document and identifies suggested resolutions.
Prescriptive Approach to Environmental Standard
In the Environmental Standard, many of the considerations identified are prescriptive in nature rather than
outcomes based. The industry clearly prefers an outcomes based approach to regulation as it allows the industry to meet an outcome in the most environmentally efficient and cost effective manner that does not constrain
innovation. An outcomes based approach is typified by the regulator indicating what standard is expected, for example protection of the groundwater, and the industry responding as to how that will be done. It is useful for the Department to provide some guidance on ways to achieve the outcomes, as frequently there will be a few main ways that the outcome can be achieved. But if the Department not only specifies the outcome but also the approach, the Department then has to justify both the outcome and the approach. Frequently it is easier to justify an outcome and get agreement on it, than to get people to individually agree on the method.
There is also concern that by specifying process and outcome the Department may constrain how the industry develops and limit future innovation and continuous improvement. Industry is obliged to understanding com posting parameters, process controls and the range of developing technologies.
Example
Table 5: Required com posting method based on feedstock risk category-the way this is written implies no variation to the approach to composting, however dependent on the location of facilities and processing method there could be different approaches used. Also this table is taken from the Victorian Guidelines Design, construction and operating com posting facilities where it is labelled "recommended feedstock to composting technology types". In the Victorian document the language of 'recommended' rather than 'required' gives more flexibility to operators while still providing some general direction.
Suggested Resolution
That the Department clearly identify the outcome sought for each of the different parameters within the Standard and provide recommendations for achievement rather than requirements.
Risk based approach
The Department has indicated that a risk based approach is its intention in writing the Guidelines. However
currently this is not consistently reflected in the documentation. For industry a risk based approach is one where the risks for an activity are identified and then risks are either avoided or mitigated. With particular regard to facility location, the industry considers the Department is taking an approach which does not consider that risks can be mitigated.
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Example
Section 4.1 Excluded Locations- "Com posting facilities must not be located within". Using the term 'must not' is very prescriptive and does not take into account that the Planning System (based on previous Department of Environment advice) does allow composting facilities in some areas- as long as proper controls are in place.
Several major com posting operations are located in the 'must not' areas currently, the development of these facilities was approved on the basis of mitigating risks, rather than seeking to completely avoid them.
Suggested Resolution
The Department clearly identifies that there is flexibility in the siting of com posting facilities as long as risks are mitigated.
Use of Victorian and New South Wales Information
The industry understands that other States have developed Guidelines for com posting and that the Department is drawing on this information in the development of the WA Environmental Standard. Industry is concerned that large sections of the NSW and Victorian Guidelines are being placed into the WA document without an
understanding of the context in which they were developed.
Example
Table 2: Asphalt/Concrete-"lOOmm thickness, not including the compacted base below the liner". In the WA Environmental Standard, two sections from the NSW standard have been merged "Working surfaces" and "Leachate barrier systems" into one "com posting hardstand" section. Feedback from industry has indicated that the 100mm thickness in the NSW Guidelines was included because the soils underneath the asphalt/concrete are likely to be clay soils which crack. In WA the base is more likely to be sand, therefore the cracking potential is removed.
Many of the tables and information in the Environmental Standard is taken directly from the NSW and Victorian documents. Referencing exactly which document the information is taken from it would provide greater
transparency for stakeholders and more legitimacy to the document. This is the approach that has been taken in other Departmental documents.
Example
Department of Environment Regulation Material Guideline Construction Products, pg 7. The Table contains extensive references as to where the different parameters are sourced from:
http://www.der.wa.gov.au/images/documents/our-
work/consultation/Material Guideline Construction Products Guidelines.pdf
Some information appears to have been taken directly from the Victoria Guidelines and should be updated to reflect WA documents.
Example
Table 6: Pathogen limits-Enteric viruses Limit- <1 PFU per lOgrams total (dry weight), this is taken directly from the Victorian Guidelines which reference the Biosolids Land Application- Guidelines for Environmental Management {EPA Publications 943}, Apri/2004. It would be more appropriate to reference the WA Biosolids Guidelines.
Suggested Resolution
o Understand the context in which the other States Guidelines operate o Clearly reference the source of information used in the document
o Change reference from Victorian Biosolids Guidelines to WA Biosolids Guidelines
Definition of com posting
Composting is clearly defined in the Environmental Standard as an aerobic process. However, the Background Paper also refers to anaerobic composting. It is possible for a composting process to become anaerobic but this is different
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to an intentional anaerobic process. Anaerobic conditions, and associated odours, are likely to be the cause of complaints in relation to composting facilities. Maintenance of aerobic conditions is therefore likely to be a desirable outcome of any particular technology, process or management system.
Example
Industry impact section of the Consultation Paper, "Three of these operations involve enclosed (anaerobic) com posting~~.
Suggested Resolution
Include a clarification regarding anaerobic processes- for example anaerobic digestion- and differentiate these processes from 'com posting' processes.
Use of Australian Standard 4454 (2012) Composts, soil conditioners and mulches Section 2.1 of the Australian Standard 4454 (2012) states:
" ... it is not appropriate for regulators to specify compliance with this standard as a mandatory requirement for facility operations, licensing or application to land of production outputs"
This statement recognises that AS 4454 does not cover all types of com posted product. AS 4454 is only directly applicable for unrestricted use products, such as those destined for the home garden.
An earlier version of the Australian Standard referred to the restricted market which can include customers such as professional landscapers, farming and rehabilitation. The Environmental Standard is not clear about what standard that material needs to meet. Industry would argue that a fit for purpose product can be generated that may not meet all of the parameters set out in AS 4454. The Standard needs to provide more guidance on how that material that does not meet all the parameters can be used.
Suggested Resolution
Greater clarity is required in Section 7 on how the Environmental Standard applies to product which does not meet the AS 4454 requirements but is still a fit for purpose product.
Section 6.1- Unacceptable Feedstocks
The DER 'end of waste' guidelines state that a product that is generated using a "waste derived product" remains a waste product unless it can be demonstrated through an 'end of waste' assessment process that it is no longer a waste. To meet this requirement involves significant sampling and testing requirements.
Suggested Resolution
Clarify how the 'End of waste' guidance interacts with the Environmental Standard: com posting.
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