Environmental Management Systems (EMS) Major Assignment 2014 Completion Record Student name Type your name here Available marks 93 Final mark Marker to enter final mark Completion date Marker to enter date. www.cffet.net/env Major Assignment EMS Purpose The purpose of this assignment is to provide a summative assessment for the unit MSS024002A – Implement environmental management plans and procedures. As this unit deals with the implementation of EMP’s, we start by analysing the conditions that give rise to an EMP, and then explore the written EMP, and finally examine the practical implementation from the environmental technician’s perspective. Structure The assignment is broken into three major parts as follows; Part 1 – The reasons for the EMP Part 2 – EMP analysis Part 3 – Practical implementation Resources required To undertake this assignment, you will need access to the following documents and information from the relevant Subject Study Materials pages; The EMS course notes (Study modules 1 – 6) The Environmental Management Strategy for Orica’s ANE Plant Orica’s Environmental protection Licence (EPL) The Environmental Fieldwork course notes would help as well The ALS Environment Pocket Guide to sampling The NSW Legislation website; http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au/ Submission Answer all questions in this document Submit the completed assignment to your teacher using the following format; Firstname-lastname-EMS-ASST-1-2014 The assignment is due no later than November 28th 2014 Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 1 Major Assignment EMS Part 1 – The reasons for the EMP Background The approval process for a project is a complex and involved process, but at the end of it, the consent authority (in this case, the Minister for Planning) will usually issue a project approval notice which may or may not apply ‘conditions’ on the approval of the project. If conditions apply, there will typically be different conditions that apply to the different phases, such as the construction and operational phases. Part 1 deals with understanding the consent conditions which apply to the development of Orica’s ANE plant. Task You have been supplied with a document titled ‘REF-Orica-Kurri-EMS’, read the Project Approval section in Appendix A and answer the following questions. 1. Identify the reasons for the consent approval. 1mk. Click here to enter text. 2. What are the operational limits on approval? 1mk. Click here to enter text. 3. List the three conditions (bold headings) that apply to the fauna and flora aspects of the project? 3mk. Click here to enter text. 4. What is the projects main concern in relation to air pollution? 2mk. Click here to enter text. 5. Identify the consent conditions in relation to noise management. 1mk. Click here to enter text. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 2 Major Assignment EMS 6. What key document is referenced in Noise under Note ‘a’ for conducting noise measurements? 1mk. Click here to enter text. 7. What other measurements (under Note ‘b’) are required for noise measurements. 2mk. Click here to enter text. 8. Explain the key concerns of the Approval in relation to soil and water management. 3mk. Click here to enter text. 9. How will the discovery of Aboriginal heritage matter be dealt with? 2mk. Click here to enter text. 10. Schedule 4 of the Approval outlines the need for an Environmental Management Strategy (i.e. EMP). What are the five key outcomes that the EMP must achieve? 5mk. Click here to enter text. 11. What does the Approval state must occur if an ‘incident’ occurs? 2mk. Click here to enter text. 12. Read through the Project Approval again from the beginning and note down the number of audits (audits only, not reports or other documents) that need to be undertaken for consent approval. 4mk. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 3 Major Assignment EMS Click here to enter text. 13. Identify the information and data that must be made available by the proponent on their website. 5mk. Click here to enter text. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 4 Major Assignment EMS Part 2 – Analysis of the EMP Background Now that you have read the Project Approval and the consent conditions, you understand the need for the EMP. The document is written by the proponent’s management, with very little involvement from the field technicians other than cursory questioning about site specific criteria. The field technician might work for; ⃘ a proponent (i.e. Orica). ⃘ a consultant that Orica hire ⃘ a regulatory authority (council, state or federal level) The work from any side will be the same for the technician, but access to the EMP and other systems may be limited if you work for a consultancy. As you work through this part of the assignment, you need to imagine working from either perspective. To answer the questions for this part, you will need access to Orica’s environmental management strategy document (available from the subject website). It is not recommended that you read this document like a book! Read the questions and then find the answers in the document. Task With regards to the Orica strategy supplied, answer the following questions; 14. Read Section 2.2 and identify the Environmental Planning Instruments (such as Local Environment Plans (LEPs) or State Environmental protection policies (SEPPs)), legislation and licences that have been triggered by the activity at the commonwealth, state and local levels. 7mk. a. Commonwealth Click here to enter text. b. State Click here to enter text. c. Local Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 5 Major Assignment EMS Click here to enter text. 15. According to Section 1.2 of the Orica’s strategy, what is the scope of responsibility for achieving the environmental outcomes? 1mk. Click here to enter text. 16. Use Section 2.1 of the EMS to list the major environmental aspects requiring monitoring or other aspects of protection from the activity. 1mk. Click here to enter text. 17. Assume that there has been an environmental incident (such as a fuel leak to surface water). What is the proposed response? What would the environmental technician do as part of that response? 3mk. Click here to enter text. 18. In relation to Orica’s requirements for reporting and auditing, how would the environmental technician be involved in the implementation of continual improvement? 2mk. Click here to enter text. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 6 Major Assignment EMS Part 3 – Deriving monitoring requirements Background Once the key criteria have been identified from the EMP the monitoring needs to be implemented and undertaken. In this case, the Environmental protection licence (EPL) will be of use to determine this information. As you have only undertaken fieldwork based on surface water sampling, we shall only focus on that type of fieldwork in this section. Be aware that the same implementation strategies will need to be applied to all aspects of the monitoring for the EMP. Task With reference to Orica’s Environmental Protection Licence (EPL), find the relevant information to answer the following questions; 19. From section P1.2 of the EPL provided, identify the monitoring point that overflow water from the treatment plant is sampled. 1mk. Click here to enter text. 20. Identify from Section 3, L1 of the EPL which part of the Protection of Environment Operations Act 1997 Orica must comply with? 1mk. Click here to enter text. 21. Look up the Act (from the website provided), find the Section you identified above and state what it says. 2mk. Click here to enter text. 22. What are the requirements for monitoring of released water in Section 5, M2.1 of the EPL? 2mk. Click here to enter text. 23. List the analytes (pollutants) that need to be monitored. 1mk. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 7 Major Assignment EMS Click here to enter text. 24. From Section M3.1 of the EPL, identify what the testing of the samples must be performed in accordance with. 1mk. Click here to enter text. 25. Identify the frequency of the sampling required. 1mk. Click here to enter text. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 8 Major Assignment EMS Part 4 – Implementation by the technician Background The EPL outlined the monitoring requirements including the samples required, the pollutants to be monitored and the frequency at which they must be monitored. We shall assume that by ‘Approved methods’ means that a NATA registered laboratory must be used to perform the analysis except where field tests are required. Task With your knowledge of performing field sampling and testing for surface waters from your studies or work (or read the Environmental Fieldwork Study modules), provide brief answers to the following; 26. Now that you know what monitoring is required, identify five (5) types of paperwork (physical or electronic) that you would require in order to perform the job properly (i.e. in accordance with any implemented quality standards)? Click here to enter text. 27. What testing equipment would you need to meet the requirements of the EPL? 2mk. Click here to enter text. 28. Identify five pieces of calibration or QC consumables that would be the technician needed to maintain the use of these instruments (read the Environmental Fieldwork Study modules if you cannot think of the answer off hand!). 5mk. Click here to enter text. 29. Assuming that ALS are the laboratory that Orica will use (note that this is not a recommendation, just a convenience!), use the supplied chart to identify what sample bottles the technician would need (using the bottles colour code). 4mk. Click here to enter text. Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 9 Major Assignment EMS 30. Identify five pieces of sampling, preservation or transportation equipment that would be required by the technician to perform the sampling. 5mk. Click here to enter text. 31. As a summary of the process of discovery you have just undertaken, complete the following table identifying the key documents or information at each step of the implementation process. 20mk. Phase of implementation Key document/action Likely Key personnel Project approval Click here to enter text. Senior management Project compliance Click here to enter text. All staff & contractors Project operation Click here to enter text. Operations management Monitoring requirements Click here to enter text. Operational staff and technicians Collection of samples Click here to enter text. Technicians Analysis of samples Click here to enter text. Technicians or lab Data collection and interpretation Click here to enter text. Technicians and operational staff Reporting Click here to enter text. Operational staff Auditing Click here to enter text. Operational management Implementing recommendations Click here to enter text. Senior management Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 Page | 10 Major Assignment Chemical, Forensic, Food & Environmental Technology [cffet.net/env] Version 3.0 30/05/2016 EMS Page | 11