EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2007 No. 335

 

Issued by the authority of the Assistant Minister for the
Environment and Water Resources

 

Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Act 1989

 

Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Amendment Regulations 2007 (No. 2)

 

Section 70 of the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management

Act 1989 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing matters required or permitted by the Act to be prescribed, or necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.

 

Section 22 of the Act makes provision for periodic departmental website publication of licences granted, refused, cancelled or surrendered.

Subsection 45A(1) of the Act provides, in part, that regulations may be made that:

-        regulate the sale, purchase, acquisition and disposal of scheduled substances; and

-        regulate the storage, use or handling of scheduled substances.

 

Methyl bromide is a scheduled substance and is controlled under Schedule 1 to the Act. Methyl bromide contributes to the depletion of the ozone layer when released into the atmosphere, and most uses of it are emissive by nature. The Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Regulations 1995 (the Principal Regulations) currently regulate the supply and end use of non-quarantine and pre-shipment methyl bromide through record keeping and reporting systems.

 

Australia’s obligations under the Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer (the Protocol) ensure that stocks of methyl bromide are only sold and used for authorised purposes. Under the Protocol, non-quarantine and pre-shipment (non-QPS) uses of methyl bromide were phased out from 1 January 2005 except where critical use exemptions are granted by Parties to the Protocol (which in Australia in 2008, will be restricted to the strawberry runner, cut flower and rice industries) or an emergency use is granted by Parties.

 

The Regulation amendments will amend the Principal Regulations to make minor administrative amendments in the operation of methyl bromide and in the existing regulatory arrangements for the refrigeration and air conditioning, and fire protection sectors.

 

The Regulations:

·        allow for the publication of ‘surrendered’ licences in addition to ‘granted’ and ‘cancelled’ licences;

·        make reference to the Non-QPS Exemption List and Intermediate Supplier List for Non‑QPS Applications of Methyl Bromide in 2008 ;

·        list two updated codes of practice for the refrigeration and air conditioning industry to ensure coverage of all relevant gases and technologies.

 

Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment.

 

The Codes of Practice which are incorporated as amendments to Table 135 of the Regulations were developed by the Australian Institute of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heating (AIRAH) on contract to the Australian Government. The Codes were developed over a two year period with the assistance of a review committee which incorporated key government agencies, industry associations and businesses from both Australia and New Zealand. In addition to this committee, consultation on the Codes was undertaken through invitations to comment sent to a broad stakeholder base including stakeholder groups mentioned above along with training organisations and interested individuals in the relevant industries.

 

The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003. The Regulations commence on 1 January 2008.

Attachment

 

Details of the Regulations are as follows:

 

Regulation 1 provides that the name of the Regulations is the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Amendment

Regulations 2007 (No. 2).

 

Regulation 2 provides that the Regulations commence on 1 January 2008.

 

Regulation 3 provides that the Ozone Protection and Synthetic Greenhouse Gas Management Regulations 1995 (the Principal Regulations) are amended as set out in the Schedule.

 

Schedule – Amendments

 

Items 1 and 2 allow for the Secretary of the Department of the Environment and Water Resources to publish details of licences which have been surrendered on the Department’s website, replacing the current provision to publish granted and cancelled licences only.

 

This addition to Regulation 4(1) expands the current provision to include the word ‘surrendered’.

 

Item 3 substitutes Items 31 and 32 in Table 135, of Regulation 135 with updated codes of practice. Making the Standards read AIRAH 2007(1) and (2), and Title of standards ‘Australia and New Zealand refrigerant handling code of practice 2007
Part 1 – self-contained low charge systems’, and ‘Australia and New Zealand refrigerant handling code of practice 2007 Part 2 – systems other than self-contained low charge systems’ respectively.

 

Items 4 and 5 includes reference to the 2008 year under the Non-QPS Exemption List definition at Regulation 200, and also incorporates the 2008 year Non-QPS Intermediate Supplier List into Regulation 213.

Item 6 removes the explanatory note at the end of licence type 3 in Table 322, Regulation 322 to remove confusion in its interpretation.