Glossary

Activity	An industrial, agricultural or commercial activity or an activity of any other nature whatever (including the keeping of a substance or an animal).
Air pollution	The emission into the air of any impurity including odours.
Anniversary date	The anniversary date is the anniversary each year of the date of issue of the licence.
Applicant Approval Audit	A person who brings a civil proceeding. Clause 106 of the POEO (General) Regulation 2009 currently prescribes additional matters to be included in the Public Register. This includes approvals for certain fires or incinerators granted under clause 9 of the POEO (Control of Burning) Regulation 2000 and approvals to an occupier of premises for an alternative standard of concentration for hydrogen sulphide emissions granted under clause 7A of the Clean Air (Plant and Equipment) Regulation 1997. Replaced on 1 September 2005 by clause 31 of the POEO (Clean Air) Regulation 2002. Mandatory environmental audit: see POEO Act s 174.
Assessable pollutant	An air pollutant or water pollutant specified in relation to an activity in POEO Reg Sch 1.
Catchment	The area in which water (from rainfall or otherwise) collects, to form the supply of a river, stream or drainage area.
Condition	A condition of a licence which can include emission limit conditions, operating, monitoring and recording conditions, reporting and general conditions, special conditions.
DECC	The Department of Environment and Climate Change, established in April 2007, exercises certain statutory functions and powers under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 in the name of the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).
Defendant Environment protection notice	A person charged with a criminal offence A clean-up notice, prevention notice or prohibition notice issued under POEO Act Chapter 4 and in force.
Enforceable undertaking	The administrative power of the EPA to accept a written undertaking by a company or individual in relation to an actual or potential breach of the POEO Act, which is enforceable in the Land and Environment Court.
Exemption	The EPA may exempt any person or class of persons from any specified provision or provisions of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 or the regulations. An exemption may be granted in an emergency (eg. fires, floods) or circumstances where the EPA is satisfied that it is not practicable to comply with relevant provisions by implementing operational changes to plant or practices; and the EPA is satisfied that non-compliance with the provisions will not have any significant adverse effect on public health, property or the environment. See POEO Act Part 9.1.
LBL	Load Based Licensing. A scheme that sets limits on the total pollution emitted by licensees and links their licence fees to these emissions – the lower the emissions the lower the fee.
Land pollution	The degradation of land because of the disposal of waste on the land.
Licence application	An application for the issue, transfer or variation of a licence.
Licence review	The Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 requires that the EPA will review each licence at not more than three year intervals after the issue of the licence, to ensure all conditions are appropriate. See POEO Act Part 3.6. The date of completion of each licence review is provided with each single licence record.
Load based fees	Licence fees that are based on the amount of particular pollutants that are discharged by an activity. Load-based fees do not apply to all activities.
Mobile plant licence	A licence for scheduled activities (not premises-based) or mobile waste processing.
Noise pollution	The emission of offensive noise.
Pollution	Means water pollution; air pollution; noise pollution or land pollution.
Premises-based licence	A licence to authorise the carrying out of scheduled development work, scheduled activities or to control the carrying out of non-scheduled activities for the purpose of regulating water pollution.
Respondent Prosecutor Scheduled Activity	A person agains whom civil proceedings are brought. The person who brings criminal offences. An activity listed in Schedule 1 of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997.
Scheduled development work	Work at any premises at which scheduled activities are not carried on that is designed to enable scheduled activities to be carried on at the premises.
Statement of compliance	An annual report relating to compliance with the conditions of a licence. Includes information relating to compliance with the manner of calculation of licence fee (including the administrative and load based components of that fee).
Transfer	The transfer of a licence to another person: see POEO Act s 54.
Transporter of waste licence	A licence to transport various types and/or quantities of hazardous, industrial or liquid waste or used tyres.
Variation	The EPA or the holder of the licence may seek to vary a licence (including the conditions of a licence). A variation includes the attaching of a condition, the substitution of a condition, the omission of a condition or the amendment of a condition: see POEO Act s 58.
Waste	Has the same meaning as in the Waste Minimisation and Management Act 1995 (unless specially defined).
Water pollution	Placing in or on, or otherwise introducing into or onto waters, or in a position where it is likely to enter waters, any matter, whether solid, liquid or gaseous, so that the physical, chemical or biological condition of the waters is changed. For more information see the Dictionary of the POEO Act.

Updated 14 July 2021