The HSNO Act 1996
The HSNO Act, a complex and comprehensive piece of legislation, was passed by Parliament in 1996. The new organisms section was implemented in July 1999. The commencement of the hazardous substances part of the Act has been delayed pending the completion of the necessary technical regulations.
The regulations are expected to be completed by September 2000.
Implementation is expected to incorporate the provisions of the HSNO Amendment Bill No 2 which is due to be reported back to parliament in September 2000. The Transport and Environment Select Committee is expected to endorse all of the key recommendations in the Bill and it seems likely the Bill will pass through the House by late September/early October. If so HSNO could commence as early as November, however it seems more likely to be implemented early in 2001 which would allow time for the training of HSNO enforcement officers and public seminars.
In response to concerns expressed by various industry sectors, the NZCIC convened a panel of experts to review the regulations technical documents. The complexity of these regulations has required a rather lengthy and involved consultative process. However, the review identified where simple legislative and procedural changes could improve the application of the Act.
The regulations are extremely complex as they cover explosives, flammables, corrosives and oxidising substances and those which are toxic to people and the environment. We needed to address the tracking of the most hazardous substances, packaging, emergency management and disposal as well as the introduction of new substances into New Zealand.
Within the overall objective of improving the operability and efficiency of the Act, the Amendment Bill can be divided into three main areas:
A copy of the Amendment Bill, together with an overview on the contents, is available here. It should be noted that each of the recommendations identified by the NZCIC’s Industry Review Group is included in the Bill. If each of these issues survives the Select Committee review, including the public consultation process, then industry will have achieved all of the improvements we seek.
The HSNO Act provides a highly advanced environmental risk management regime, tailored to New Zealand’s circumstances. These changes will ensure that we can deliver the desired environmental goals at the lowest possible cost, thereby ensuring the HSNO Act works as was originally intended.
Following the election, the appropriate Select Committee will consider the HSNO Amendment Bill. Interested individuals and organisations will have the opportunity to comment on these proposed changes at that time. The Bill is expected to be reported back to the House not later than mid-year.
The technical regulations needed for the hazardous substances part of the Act are close to being finalised by officials. It is anticipated that the Government can agree this month to the technical details for these regulations. This will allow legal drafting to proceed.
Regrettably, there will not be time to promulgate the large package of regulations before the election. Accordingly, the Minister plans to have the regulations completed and available to enable the incoming Government to take an early decision on the date for bringing the Act into force for hazardous substances.