Here are some noteworthy and interesting global EHS regulatory changes from October 2018. We cover EHS legislation and standards for over 90 countries and 200 jurisdictions. If you would like to track legislative changes for specific regions, countries or jurisdictions, we are happy to help. Please send us a request for more information here and we will contact you shortly.
United States
America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018
Notable effects of this change are to revise requirements for (1) consumer confidence reports that community water systems must send to customers of the system; and (2) community water systems’ risk assessments and emergency response plans.
Cranes and Derricks in Construction: Operator Qualification
Clarifications are being provided for each employer’s duty to ensure the competency of crane operators through training, certification or licensing, and evaluation. Furthermore, this change establishes minimum requirements for determining operator competency and alters the provision that required different levels of certification based on the rated lifting capacity of equipment.
New Zealand
Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018
The effect of this change is to repeal this legislation and replace it with the Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018 (NZ-LI2018/96). In comparison with the repealed legislation, the new legislation notably (1) has different requirements for the format of fire action notices; (2) has different requirements for evacuation schemes (plans that provide for occupants’ safety in the event of a fire or a fire alarm); (3) adds new offences and new powers for Fire and Emergency New Zealand; and (4) clarifies a number of provisions from the repealed legislation.
United Kingdom
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Amendment) Regulations 2018
The effect of this change is to provide for the collection, treatment, recovery and disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) deposited at designated collection facilities, and to insert a new reporting requirement relating to the amount of WEEE sent for treatment or for reuse outside the United Kingdom.
Victoria
Environment Protection Amendment Act 2018
The effect of this change is to overhaul general environmental law in Victoria, including (1) introducing a criminally enforceable general environmental duty that requires businesses, industry, and community members to prevent environmental harm (section 25); (2) expanding the scope of Victoria’ environmental protection regime and strengthening the government’s enforcement powers; (3) adding a duty to notify the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) and to respond to any harm caused when certain “pollution incidents” (e.g., incidents causing a spill that results in pollution) occur (section 32); (4) replacing the existing waste management framework; (5) adding requirements for managing contaminated land; and (6) creating a tiered framework for site permissions (registrations, permits, and licences).
Nunavut
Mine Health and Safety Regulations, amendment
The effect of the change is to remove work experience requirements for inspectors of underground or open pit mines. Previously, persons appointed as inspector of these types of mines were required to have at least seven years practical mining experience, of which at least five years has been spent in production operations, and at least one year supervisory experience at a mine.
Poland
Act of 20 July 2018 amending the act on the Inspection of Environmental Protection and certain other acts
The effect of the change is notably to introduce the requirement for certain entities to provide the environmental protection authority with data and access for environmental monitoring and the fines in the case of failure to do so.
Calgary
A Bylaw of the City of Calgary to Amend Bylaw 20M88 (The Street Bylaw)
The effect is to add penalties payable upon failure to meet requirements related to the clearing of snow and ice from sidewalks and pathways.
Ireland
European Union (Planning and Development) (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2018
According to MerrionStreet.ie, the effect of this change in combination with related changes to other planning legislation is to notably broaden environmental factors to be considered in the environmental impact assessment (EIA), make more stringent screening procedures to determine whether EIA is required for development consent proposals, expand information to be included in EIA reports, broaden requirements for public access to information, and require arrangements to be put in place to avoid, prevent, or reduce and, if possible, offset significant adverse effects of a proposed development on the environment.
