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National Site Contamination Assessment Guidelines Amended

Posted on April 02, 2013

The Standing Council of Environment and Water has officially approved an amendment to the National Environment Protection (Assessment of Site Contamination) Measure (ASC NEPM). The amendment, which was approved on 11 April 2013 supports the ASC NEPM’s aim to ‘provide adequate protection of human health and the environment, where site contamination has occurred, through the development of an efficient and effective national approach to the assessment of site contamination’.

The ASC NEPM commenced in 1999, pursuant to the Commonwealth National Environmental Protection Council Act, and is an environmental protection policy under the Environment Protection Act (SA) and the corresponding Acts in each participating State and Territory. It provides national guidance for the assessment of site contamination in Australia.

The ASC NEPM consists of two schedules which provide guidance on the assessment of site contamination. Schedule A identifies the recommended process for the assessment of site contamination and schedule B contains 10 general guidelines for the assessment of such site contamination.

In 2005 an extensive review of the ASC NEPM commenced. That review has resulted in the 11 April 2013 amendment which incorporates updated methodologies for assessing human health and ecological risks and site assessment methods.

The amendment

Specifically, the amendment relates to:

  • human health risk assessment;
  • ecological risk assessment;
  • asbestos and petroleum hydrocarbons; and
  • vapour intrusion.

Who is affected

The changes to the ASC NEPM will impact regulators, site assessors, consultants, environmental auditors, landowners, developers and industry providing updated guidelines for the assessment of site contamination.

The Standing Council has released a statement saying ‘the amendment ensures it [the ASC NEPM] will remain the premier document for the assessment of site contamination in Australia’. The amendment aligns the ASC NEPM with Australian advances and overseas methodologies.

Operation of the amendment

The South Australian Environment Protection Agency is in the process of preparing a 12 month transitional implementation plan for the ASC NEPM amendment.

At this stage, the amendment has not been released or gazetted so watch this space for further updates!

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