Environmental reporting

Each of our nominated facilities have Environmental Management Plans (EMP’s) in place to manage environmental impacts and ensure we are operating in compliance with the licence conditions that apply to the site. EMP’s detail the facilities, operation and environmental conditions for each site along with applicable emissions.

EMP’s offer comprehensive guidelines for employees on:

• environmental goals and principles
• management strategies
• pollution control
• performance indicators and targets
• monitoring requirements for licence compliance
• review and reporting procedures for water, odour, dust, litter, noise and waste
• reporting, staffing and training requirements
• environmental auditing and review
• emergency preparedness
• transfer vehicle management, and
• control of noxious pest, weed and vermin where appropriate.

The EMPs also refer employees to relevant sections of our Environment, Quality and Safety (EQ&S) Management System for more detailed guidance on environmental management and monitoring procedures where appropriate.

View a selection of our EMP’s

We undertake various internal audits which cover all licence and DA compliance-related issues, including the environment. Internal audits are carried out by operational staff and Environment and Workforce Safety Officers, and include daily and weekly reporting checklists, Environmental Compliance Audits and a Management System Audit. Monitoring parameters include odour, litter, dust, noise, stormwater, trade waste, pests and noxious weeds.

Weekly reports are submitted internally for review, while monthly safety, environment and quality management meetings are held at each site to manage operational activities and review performance. All site operators and Environment and Workforce Safety Officers and Site Managers are involved in these meetings.

We also engage independent auditors to carry out annual audits of the site’s operations and reviews of its EQ&S Management System.

Follow-up is conducted for all of these processes to ensure reported information is acted on and any issues are swiftly resolved.

In 2009, our operations triggered an energy use threshold that required the business to participate in the Energy Efficiency Opportunities (EEO) Program. This means we are must undertake energy assessments of our activities to identify energy saving opportunities within a five-year cycle.

Our Hampton Park Resource Recovery Precinct in VIC was selected to participate in the first year of assessments in 2011, and external consultants assisted SUEZ employees in assessing energy use associated with site activities.

In accordance with Section 5.7A of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997, we have prepared Pollution Incident Response Management Plans (PIRMP’s) for all our NSW sites holding relevant EPA licences.

These plans aim to prevent and minimise the risk of a pollution incident occurring on our sites and to ensure the timely notification of all relevant persons in the event of a pollution incident occurrence.