Acid Sulfate Soils and Waste – ALGA Webinar

Coastal Acid Sulfate Soils in NSW are currently regulated through the NSW EPA utilising guidelines created in 1998 (ASSMAC ASS Manual).  At the time of publication, these guidelines were considered best practice in NSW and Australia.  Within the intervening 26 years each State, apart from NSW, has produced new or updated ASS guidance. Despite the 2018 National Guidelines coming to prominence, the NSW EPA website endorses the 1998 ASSMAC Guidelines for the assessment and management of ASS and the QASSIT 2004 Laboratory Methods Manual.

Coupled with this is the issue of ASS and waste management in NSW and the definition of virgin excavated natural material (VENM).  Part 4 of the 2014 NSW EPA Waste Classification Guidelines refers to sulphidic ores and recent attempts to define this term have not been helpful for the industry.

This talk is designed for contractors, consultants and regulators assessing and or managing ASS in NSW.  A series of recent NSW based case studies will be discussed that highlight the current issues.  This talk calls for the updating of the 1998 ASSMAC Manual to bring it in line with the 2018 National Guidelines and provide better guidance to the industry and regulators on ASS issues in NSW.  There is also a need to better define sulphidic ores and conduct further research into the environmental effects of excavated non coastal ASS.