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https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/mar/14/nsw-to-double-penalties-for-worst-environmental-crimes-in-wake-of-asbestos-crisis>
"Penalties for the most serious environmental crimes would double and the New
South Wales environmental watchdog would have powers to recall potentially
contaminated products from consumers under major changes to environmental
protection laws proposed by the Minns government.
The environment minister, Penny Sharpe, said the government was proposing the
largest set of amendments to the Environment Protection Authority’s (EPA’s)
powers since the regulator was established in 1991.
The legislation, to be introduced to the parliament on Thursday, follows a
crisis triggered after asbestos was found in mulch at the Rozelle parklands in
January.
An EPA investigation has since detected asbestos in mulch at 75 sites across
greater Sydney.
Sharpe said the EPA’s criminal investigation into the mulch had highlighted
loopholes in the state’s environmental regulations that needed to be fixed.
Among the proposed reforms are a doubling of the maximum penalty for tier-1
environmental offences – the most serious environmental crimes – to $10m for
companies and $2m for individuals.
The penalty for tier-2 asbestos-related offences would increase to $4m for
companies and $1m for individuals.
On-the-spot fines for smaller offences would also double and the government is
proposing to crack down on small-scale illegal waste dumpers with maximum
penalties of $50,000 for companies and $25,000 for individuals."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
