Dangerous goods make up 10-15% of domestic freight and have potential to harm people, property and the environment. They include substances such as explosives, flammable liquids and gases, and oxidising agents. However, Government inspection programs were limited. The Office of Environment and Heritage carried out very few checks in the four years up to 2010, with no inspections made in the metropolitan area. This is despite Port Botany handling around 50,000 containers of dangerous goods per year. Statewide, only 303 inspections were made in 2009/10 and only 20 in 2008/09.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #212 - released 10 May 2011

The level of non compliance with the requirements of this Premier’s Memorandum is concerning, particularly considering the NSW Procurement Reforms were effective since 2006. The implementation strategy for procurement reform was announced as early as 2001. We recommend the governing bodies of agencies and management review, not only the processes their agencies have in place to comply with procurement reforms and requirements, but also more broadly how agencies identify and comply with laws, regulations, Treasury policy pronouncements, Premier’s memoranda and other obligations. 

Native vegetation is a complex and difficult area to regulate. There is an inherent tension between economic development and conservation. In our opinion, the complexities and the lack of accountability have contributed to the present position, whereby a whole-of-government approach to the protection of native vegetation in NSW has not been developed. There are currently no objectives or targets to measure progress in conserving native vegetation. Only one, of a possible twenty-two regional management plans, has been approved since the Act commenced. There is also a lack of comprehensive information about the status of, and changes to, native vegetation across rural NSW.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #101 - released 20 August 2002

SDRO deals well with very high volumes and collects substantial sums of money. However, there are a number of factors which limit the effectiveness of the fine enforcement process and affect SDRO’s capacity to recover debt. SDRO is confronted with conflicting roles as both law enforcer and debt collector. As a law enforcement agency, SDRO treats all matters the same. But as a debt collector, other approaches could be pursued which would recover more outstanding dollars.

Many of the factors which inhibit SDRO’s ability to collect unpaid fines are beyond its control and require legislative change or a coordinated inter-agency response. Until these problems are fixed, the credibility of the fine enforcement process, and people’s willingness to pay outstanding fines, will continue to be undermined.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #94 - released 17 April 2002

The Audit Office is of the opinion that the basis for environmental impact assessment of major projects in NSW is sound. The key concept of 'environmental significance' is well defined. The system is closely specified. The Department of Urban Affairs and Planning (DUAP) leads a whole-of-government approach to environmental impact assessment and its assessments are comprehensive. However, the Audit Office considers that there are opportunities for improvement by more actively managing the participants and the performance of the environmental impact assessment system. DUAP needs to strengthen its internal documentation and must ensure the public have greater involvement.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #92 - released 28 November 2001

The regulatory framework introduced under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997, along with other initiatives progressively being implemented by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA), should enhance the overall effectiveness of environment protection in NSW. The Audit Office is of the opinion that the framework is consistent with best practice and once fully implemented, should contribute to the achievement of further improvements in the environmental performance of industry.

However while the legislative framework supports best practice in regulation and enforcement, there are a number of issues which limit the effectiveness of the reforms. Some of the problems, such as the quality of licences and the effectiveness of compliance activities, have been identified by the EPA and may be addressed through recent initiatives.

Parliamentary reference - Report number #82 - released 18 April 2001