Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) published its annual report for the 2014/15 financial year this week, highlighting its ongoing commitment to working with industry, business and the community to protect Victoria’s environment.
EPA Chief Executive Officer Nial Finegan said the authority remained committed to listening to, learning from and working with the community it served.
“EPA has a strong and positive culture that is committed to continually improving how it delivers real public value,” he said.
“We look forward to the findings of the State Government’s independent Inquiry into EPA to ensure the environment remains protected and that we can meet future challenges.
“As part of EPA’s five year plan, which is now in its final year in 2015/16, EPA will continue to focus on dealing with past pollution, tackling current environmental issues and shaping the environmental future.”
Mr Finegan said EPA also continued to develop its environmental monitoring capability last financial year by welcoming 14 new authorised officers from Bendigo, Wangaratta, Geelong and Melbourne. EPA now has 104 authorised officers.
As highlighted in the annual report, EPA:
- received 10,800 pollution reports from the community and industry. More than 85 per cent of those were from the community.
- continued to work with its partners in state and local government, industry and the community earlier this year by playing an active role in improving conditions in the Brooklyn Industrial Precinct. The Victorian Government announced a $1.85 million contribution towards sealing two of the area’s dustiest roads.
- along with the Department of Health and Human Services and Brimbank City Council, EPA responded to community concerns relating to the possible exposure of asbestos in Sunshine North. EPA ensured local residents had access to accurate and timely information, undertook testing in homes and hosted open house forums.
- offered the local community an opportunity to engage and contribute to environmental monitoring by launching a Citizen Science pilot project in the Latrobe Valley.
- led by EPA, with support from DELWP, Victoria’s fire services, and with input from industry, introduced regulations to reduce the risk of tyre fires from unsafe storage of tyres.
To view the annual report, visit: www.epa.vic.gov.au or click here
