DERM

Today a tweet came through my Twitter feed as follows:

sueGCB Sue Lappeman

So its "derm derm' for DERM? RT @KylieJacobson: Campbell_Newman says LNP will deal with the absurdity of DERM.

This was allegedly said at the QLD Rural Press Club Lunch

It confirms my suspicion that should @can_do_campell win #Ashgrove and a majority of seats in the Qld legislative assembly, that he will unceremoniously dismantle DERM...

I am interested to know how the alternative scenarios will pan out, if the mad Katter's tea party get any skin in the game...

DERM

The State Opposition have been critical of the Qld Labor Government’s environment credentials indicating that the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM)’s poor management was responsible for its ineffectiveness in administering and enforcing legislation.

A LNP Government would repeal the Waste Reduction & Recycling Act & would probably disassemble DERM. Shadow Minister for the Environment Andrew Powell said there’s no proper rigour & reporting in the management of waste in Qld. He cites Auditor-General reports accusing DERM of focusing on outputs then outcomes when it came to mitigating risks to the environment.

Mr Powell was also quoted as saying: "Regional Queensland was subjected to inconsistent monitoring and compliance from the department and there was appalling and limited oversight to assist regions plan effectively."

Please find follow some excerpts from DERM's Compliance Update which seem to contradict Mr Powell's assertions.

Prosecution Bulletin no. 1/2012 DERM has released its first prosecution bulletin for 2012. This bulletin reports the successful prosecution under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 and the Integrated Planning Act 1997 of a Queensland company in receivership for unlawfully operating a sewage treatment plan. Read more prosecution bulletins

Local Government Toolbox The Local Government Toolbox is a great source of information on environmental health issues - providing a wide range of useful tools on technical and customer-related matter managed by local government. The content provided includes: information on how to comply and how to apply for relevant permits, licenses and approvals fact sheets and guidelines checklists links to legislation. The information is provided for the benefit of business, the community and environmental health and customer service professionals both with and beyond local government. Read more about the Local Government Toolbox

Key DERM compliance documents Information about DERM's key compliance documents can be found on the compliance pages of the website. DERM's three major compliance documents are: Compliance Strategy 2010–14: conveys principles and strategies to ensure the compliance program delivers on DERM's objectives Annual Compliance Plan 2011–12: informs the community of planned compliance activities in the coming year Enforcement Guidelines: assist DERM in choosing an enforcement response and inform the community about DERM's compliance standards.