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Compliance audit program

Environmental compliance

Ensuring industry, government and the community comply with environmental legislation is fundamental to environment protection and the delivery of credible cost-effective regulation. The EPA, which is now part of the Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC), uses compliance audits as a tool to complement its regulatory activities.

Comprehensive approach to environmental compliance

DEC is undertaking a comprehensive approach to environmental compliance. The approach builds on and integrates the DEC's compliance audit and licence review processes. As well as assessing compliance with existing requirements, DEC reviews industry best practice to encourage improved environmental performance. The compliance program focusing on chemical storage, handling and spill management was completed in July 2006.

Compliance audit processes

DEC's compliance audit processes include Industry Sector Audit Programs and an Out of Sector Audit Program.

The Industry Sector Audit Program consists of compliance audits conducted on a sample of premises within a targeted industry sector. At the completion of each Sector Program the findings of the individual audits are collated into an Industry Sector Compliance Performance Report which provides an insight into the sectors overall compliance performance.

The Out of Sector Program consists of compliance audits conducted on any enterprise that the EPA regulates and is conducted in conjunction with the Sector Audit Program.

Compliance audits conducted under the DEC's compliance audit program assess an enterprise's compliance with environmental legislation administered by the EPA. The audits are generally unannounced.

DEC also reviews its regulation of individual premises and industry sectors to identify areas where improved regulation will help achieve the desired environmental outcomes. This may include the use of other tools such as education, consultation/negotiation and enforcement.

Compliance Audit Handbook

Audits are conducted in accordance with the procedures and protocols in the Compliance Audit Handbook cahandbook0613.pdf (542 kb, requires acrobat reader). These procedures are designed to ensure a consistent approach to audits, helping to ensure they are all adequate, reliable and comparable.

The handbook is a guide for DEC officers, but may also be used by other organisations undertaking compliance audits including public authorities, industry and industry groups, professional associations, consultants and contractors; and as an educational resource by students.

Other audit activities

Reporting compliance audit findings

The findings of each audit and a follow-up action program based on the audit findings are reported in a compliance audit report which is sent to the audited enterprise. Copies of each audit report are available to the public through DEC's library. DEC follows up with each audited enterprise to ensure that all issues are resolved.

Industry sector audit programs allow DEC to identify common issues contributing to any failure to comply by the audited sector and other issues of environmental concern. These issues are reported in industry sector compliance performance reports. DEC uses these findings to review how best its resources could be channelled to guide industry overall to address the issues identified in the report. Industry sectors audited benefit by understanding and managing the environmental and business risk of operating in their industries.

The following compliance performance reports are based on a collation of the audit findings from industry sector audit programs (reports provided as PDF require acrobat reader):

  • Piggeries Compliance Performance Report
    (piggery05123.pdf, 102 kb)
    UPDATE: This report presents the key findings of compliance audits carried out on a representative sample of premises within the piggery industry sector in NSW. The audits were undertaken through the Industry Sector Compliance Audit program on piggeries that are regulated through statutory instruments issued under environmental legislation.
  • Coal Mines Compliance Performance Report
    (coalmines.pdf, 138 kb)
    UPDATE: The coal mining industry compliance audits were conducted between October 2001 and July 2002. The EPA, now part of the Department of Environment and Conservation, required these mines to make 75 actions to address the environmental issues identified in this report. All of these actions have now been completed.
  • Livestock Processing Industries - Animal Slaughter and Rendering 
    (livestock.pdf, 325kb)
    UPDATE: The livestock processing industry compliance audits were conducted between September 2001 and August 2002. The EPA, now part of the Department of Environment and Conservation, required these facilities to take a total of 142 actions to address the environmental issues identified in this report. All of these actions have now been completed.
  • Rural Waste Landfill Facilities Compliance Performance Report
    (rural_landfills.pdf, 170kb)
  • Solid Waste Landfills Compliance Performance Report
    (landfills.pdf file, 99kb)
  • Extractive Industry Compliance Performance Report
    (extractiveind.pdf file, 131kb)
  • Asphalt Manufacturing Industry Compliance Performance Report
    (asphaltreport.pdf file, 132kb)
  • Drum or Container Reconditioning Works Compliance Performance Report (drumperfreport.pdf file, 144kb) 

Other compliance audit reports include:

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Page last updated: 19 May 2008