Compliance Report
February 2016
The Department of Planning and
Environment's Compliance Team works with
communities across NSW to ensure projects such as mines, industrial sites, major
developments and
infrastructure meet the strict conditions included in their approvals.
Our Compliance Team works closely with the community, local councils and other state and federal government agencies to educate proponents, investigate potential breaches and carry out enforcement where necessary.
Information from community members is an important avenue for the Compliance Team to learn about issues to investigate. Enforcement can range from negotiating fixes, issuing penalty notices and, in serious cases, criminal prosecutions. As well as conducting monitoring and enforcement activities, the Compliance Team plays an important role in educating proponents, community members and other stakeholders about the Department's compliance functions.
Education sessions allow the Department to reinforce expectations, better understand industry specific issues, the systems used to ensure compliance, listen to community concerns, provide feedback on sector or company performance, and promote best practice across all industry sectors.
Activity
Below is a snapshot of the Compliance Team's activity in February 2016:
COMPLIANCE MONITORING ACTIVITIES FEB 2016 2015/2016 Total
Inspections and surveillance carried out 59 428
New investigations commenced this month 10 107
Review of compliance documentation 32 378
Subtotal compliance monitoring 101 913
ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES FEB 2016 2015/2016 Total
Compliance warning letters issued 0 18
Orders imposed 0 0
Penalty notices and fines imposed 0 7
Prosecutions 0 0
Subtotal enforcement 0 25
Compliance Education Monitoring Enforcement
Monitoring
The Department's Compliance Team conducted 59 inspections to monitor compliance against conditions of approval, with some projects inspected multiple times during the period.
Infrastructure and other projects
• 330 Church St, Parramatta, Mixed Use Development (Parramatta City Council)
• 45-47 Macquarie Street & 134 - 140 Marsden Street Parramatta ( Parramatta City Council)
• 5 Whiteside Street & 14-16 David Avenue, North Ryde (Council of the City of Ryde)
• Aurizon Hexham (Newcastle City Council)
• Bay Street Tweed Heads, Mixed Use Development (Tweed Shire Council)
• Beecroft Road Pedestrian Bridge (Parramatta City Council)
• Central Park, 26 Broadway, Chippendale (Council of the City of Sydney)
• Cullerin Range Windfarm (Upper Lachlan Shire Council)
• Dubbo Base Hospital (Dubbo City Council)
• Illawarra International Health Precinct Site (Wollongong City Council)
• M4 Western Motorway (Auburn City Council, Holroyd City Council, Parramatta City Council, Strathfield Municipal Council) *2
• Memorial Avenue, Ettalong Beach, Mixed Use Development (Gosford City Council)
• NeW Space Project, University of Newcastle (Newcastle City Council)
• Site 67, Sydney Olympic Park (Auburn City Council)
• Site 68, Sydney Olympic Park (Auburn City Council)
• Warnervale Airport (Wyong Shire Council)
• Western Sydney Parklands Trust (Blacktown City Council)
• Young to Wagga Looping Pipeline (Wagga Wagga City Council)
Mines/Quarries
• Ardmore Park Quarry (Goulburn-Mulwaree Council)
• Ashton Mine (Singleton Council)
• Bolsters Quarry (Tweed Shire Council)
• Camden Gas Field (Camden Council, Campbelltown City Council, Wollondilly Shire Council)
• Dendrobium Coal Mine (Wollongong City Council)
• Dexus Quarry West ( Fairfield City Council)
• Dubbo Zirconia Project (Dubbo City Council)
• Dunloe Sand Quarry (Tweed Shire Council)
• Hera Gold Mine (Cobar Shire Council)
• Integra Underground Mine Complex (Singleton Council)
• Mackas Sand (Port Stephens Council) *3
• Mandalong Coal Mine (Lake Macquarie City Council, Wyong Shire Council)
• Moolarben Coal Mine (Mid-Western Regional Council)
• Mount Thorley Warkworth Coal Complex (Singleton Shire Council)
• Rix’s Creek Coal Mine (Singleton Council) *2
• Springvale Coal Mine(Lithgow City Council)
• Syerston Nickel Cobalt Project (Lachlan Shire Council)
• Teven Quarry (Ballina Shire Council)
• Tomingley Gold Mine (Narromine Shire Council)
• Ulan Coal Mine(Mid-Western Regional Council)
• Wambo Coal Mine (Singleton Shire Council)
• Wilpinjong Coal Mine (Mid-Western Regional Council)
• Wongawilli Coal Mine (Wollongong City Council)
Industry
• Australian Bay Lobster Facility (Tweed Shire Council) *2
• Bluetongue Brewery (Wyong Shire Council)
• Cobaki Estate (Tweed Shire Council) *2
• Genesis Dial A Dump Industries (Blacktown City Council)
• Hymix Batching Plant (Tweed Shire Council)
• Kiacatoo Cattle Feedlot and Quarry (Lachlan Shire Council)
• Orange Waste Project (Orange City Council)
• Orica Villawood Remediation Project (Bankstown City Council)
• Pace Farm (Bland Shire Council)
• Quarantine Station North Head (Manly Council)
• Tumbulgum Turf Farm (Tweed Shire Council)
• Tweed Concrete Batching Plant (Tweed Shire Council) *2
• Tweed Ultima (Tweed Shire Council)
Enforcement
The Department did not issue any Warning Letters, Penalty Infringement Notices, Orders or Prosecutions in February 2016.
Education
Sand Quarries Audit Campaign complete
Sand quarries provide a critical resource, particularly to the construction industry, with demand continuing to increase as Sydney and the far north coast’s population expands and infrastructure is developed. The NSW Department of Planning and Environment (the Department) recognises that it is important that the community has confidence these quarries are operating in accordance with their project approval conditions. There are currently 28 approved State Significant Development (SSD) sand quarries in NSW, and these quarries are either in pre-commencement or operating phase.
The Department has completed an audit campaign of 19 approved sand quarries in NSW. These quarries were selected as a representative sample of the sand quarries currently approved in NSW. The audit focused on compliance with the project approval conditions and reviewed commitments of groundwater and rehabilitation/land management plans.
The Department has produced a summary report which is published on the Department’s website and can be accessed at:
http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Assess-and-Regulate/Development-Assessment/Compliance.
Overall, the sand quarries audited were found to be generally operating at a high level of compliance with their conditions and/or commitments. The audits of the 19 sand quarries identified a 92% compliance with approval conditions audited. The most common non-compliances being:
• inadequate revision and implementation of management plans, such as groundwater and land management plans;
• non-compliant reporting requirements, such as Annual Reviews and websites; and
• implementation of adequate controls to manage extraction depth, which relates to conditions to ensure the groundwater table is not impacted.
Actions plans to address non-compliance have been agreed with each auditee and will be followed up by the Department to ensure the implementation of actions.
Media Release link: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/~/media/Files/DPE/Media-Releases/2016/February/15022016-department- of-planning-and-environment-compliance-officers-inspect-sand-quarries.ashx
Location of NSW site visits
Sydney metropolitan region site visits
