Communiqués
Environment Protection and Heritage Council
23 May 2003, Melbourne
Water, air, and waste
Urban and household water savings, the development of a national approach to air toxics, and a strong call to retailers to take action on plastic bag waste are among the outcomes of a meeting of Australia's Environment and Heritage Ministers today.
The fourth meeting of the Environment Protection and Heritage Council (EPHC) in Melbourne agreed on a package of measures to address priority issues and improve the sustainability of our cities and towns.
Water
As pressure on Australia's water resources mounts, Ministers endorsed further action to significantly reduce water consumption in our cities and towns. Australia's worst drought in a hundred years and the fact that many of our great cities are facing limits on dam capacity means urban Australians must use water much more efficiently.
Ministers agreed to develop a national mandatory water efficiency labelling scheme. The scheme will allow households to cut water use by using efficiency standards similar to the national energy labelling program. The scheme will cover showerheads, washing machines, dishwashers and toilets. These appliances account for 80% of residential water use, and have the greatest potential for improvements in water efficiency. The Council's implementation plan will include the appropriate legislative and administrative framework including the products to be covered by the scheme and the compliance and enforcement mechanisms.
This scheme could cut household water consumption by up to 5% per cent (about 58 billion litres a year).
Ministers also agreed to examine water reuse and recycling guidelines with a view to developing new national guidelines.
Air quality
As part of a national commitment to cleaner air in our towns and cities, Ministers moved to strengthen air quality standards to help protect Australians from the adverse health impacts of small pollutant particles, approving advisory reporting standards for fine particles 2.5 micrometres or less in size (known as PM2.5). These are known to produce respiratory and cardiovascular illness. The advisory reporting standards will assist with gathering sufficient data nationally on fine particles, with the information used to inform the review process for the Ambient Air Quality NEPM, which is scheduled to commence in 2005.
In a further significant move to tackle the health impacts of air pollution Ministers released for public comment a draft National Environment Protection Measure (NEPM) on Air Toxics - substances released into the atmosphere through sources such as wood fires, motor vehicles and some industrial emissions. Five of these substances - benzene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, formaldehyde, toluene and xylenes - have been linked to cancer, birth defects, genetic damage, immunodeficiency and respiratory and nervous system disorders.
The NEPM will aim to give Australia a consistent approach for dealing with high priority sites that may be emitting air toxics. It will ensure that monitoring provides better information on the effectiveness of air quality management programs. The draft measure is available on the web and Council encourages interested people to comment by Wednesday 30 July 2003.
In other moves to improve air quality, the Council approved funding for research to assess the impact of air pollution on daily mortality and morbidity in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Canberra, Brisbane, Auckland and Christchurch by early 2005.
Plastic bags
Ministers renewed their challenge to retailers to help protect the environment by keeping the more than 6.9 billion plastic shopping bags used in Australia each year out of the litter stream.
At a meeting last December, Ministers challenged retailers and the broader community to work together to meet 50 per cent recycling and reduction rates and to cut plastic bag litter by 75 per cent by the end of 2004.
Today, Environment Ministers expressed their disappointment that the draft National Code of Practice prepared by retailers failed to deal adequately with the targets set by Environment Ministers in December 2002.
Ministers agreed to meet in July to pursue nationally coordinated mandatory measures.
Chemicals
Chemical management is under the microscope internationally and Australia needs to take steps now to ensure that it benefits form the use of chemicals while protecting our environment and public health.
Today Ministers decided to spearhead a new approach to bridge significant gaps as well as to streamline chemical controls so that Australia has effective protection for the environment and the community.
Ministers endorsed a far-reaching agreement to better protect Australia's environment against the risk of chemical contamination with a cooperative national approach to the safe and sustainable use of chemicals and to streamline controls. This will overcome the complex maze of regulations and fill gaps in the way the environmental impacts of industrial chemicals are minimised and controlled.
Other Council decisions include:
Release of a report promoting sustainable tourism, Going Places: Developing Natural and Cultural Heritage Tourism in Australia: Key Opportunities. Recommendations include the development of a website to list heritage trails, themes and places to visit nationally; nationally consistent messages to welcome people to places and to foster conservation principles; and new opportunities for tourism in regional Australia based on natural and cultural heritage places.
These heritage tourism opportunities will complement state heritage initiatives and the Distinctively Australian Program announced in the 2003-04 Federal Budget to promote national listed natural and cultural heritage places, which can be used to showcase to visitors through tourism websites and travel products.
Ministers welcomed the news that over 20 CEOs of major industries have accepted their invitation to an EPHC Ministerial Business Sustainability Summit to be hosted by Queensland on 13 June 2003, in Brisbane. The Summit, to be chaired by the Commonwealth Environment Minister, Dr David Kemp, will provide a forum for government and industry leaders to explore opportunities for pursuing sustainable development through innovation, develop partnerships agreed upon at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, and help Australian businesses develop an international competitive advantage.
Movement of Controlled Waste
Minsters agreed to undertake a review of the Controlled (or Hazardous) Waste National Environment Protection Measure to more closely monitor the movement of controlled waste between states and territories and materials sourced from overseas.
