Environmental Protection (Prohibited Plastics and Balloons) Amendment Regulations 2025 00-00-00 Xml

Western Australia

Environmental Protection (Prohibited Plastics and Balloons) Amendment Regulations 2025

Contents

1.Citation1

2.Commencement1

3.Regulations amended1

4.Regulation 3 amended1

5.Regulation 3A amended2

6.Regulation 3B amended2

7.Regulation 3BB amended3

8.Regulation 3BC amended3

9.Regulation 3D amended4

10.Regulation 4B inserted4

4B.Offence in r. 4 does not apply to meat and dairy barrier bags before 1 October 20264

11.Regulations 17EA and 17EB inserted5

17EA.Terms used5

17EB.Authorised manner of disposal5

12.Regulation 17F amended6

13.Regulation 17FA inserted7

17FA.Offence to dispose of protective packaging7

Environmental Protection Act 1986

Environmental Protection (Prohibited Plastics and Balloons) Amendment Regulations 2025

Made by the Governor in Executive Council.

1.Citation

These regulations are the Environmental Protection (Prohibited Plastics and Balloons) Amendment Regulations 2025.

2.Commencement

These regulations come into operation as follows —

(a)regulations 1 and 2 — on the day on which these regulations are published on the WA legislation website;

(b)the rest of the regulations — on 1 October 2025.

3.Regulations amended

These regulations amend the Environmental Protection (Prohibited Plastics and Balloons) Regulations 2018.

4.Regulation 3 amended

In regulation 3 in the definition of cotton bud paragraph (a):

(a)after “provider” (1st occurrence) insert:

or veterinarian

(b)delete “provider; or” and insert:

provider or veterinarian; or

5.Regulation 3A amended

After regulation 3A(1)(c) insert:

(ca)a lid for a plate;

6.Regulation 3B amended

(1)In regulation 3B(1)(b) delete “unpackaged fresh fruit or vegetables.” and insert:

unpackaged —

(i)fresh fruit or vegetables; or

(ii)meat, poultry or seafood; or

(iii)dairy products; or

(iv)nuts; or

(v)confectionery.

(2)Before regulation 3B(3)(b) insert:

(a)a barrier bag that is certified as biodegradable; or

(3)After regulation 3B(3) insert:

(4)For the purposes of subregulation (3)(a), a barrier bag is certified as biodegradable if —

(a)a person or body accredited in a manner approved by the CEO has issued a certificate verifying that the barrier bag complies with —

(i)AS 4736‑2006 or AS 5810‑2010; and

(ii)the requirements relating to labelling, handles, pigmentation, opacity and bag opening circumference specified in the Biodegradable barrier bag standard published by the CEO on the Department’s website in September 2025, as in effect from time to time;

and

(b)the certificate’s period of validity has not expired.

7.Regulation 3BB amended

In regulation 3BB(3):

(a)in paragraph (c) delete “box.” and insert:

box;

(b)after paragraph (c) insert:

(d)packaging that is used to protect an item that is designed to be used for the purposes of construction work, as defined in the Building and Construction Industry (Security of Payment) Act 2021 section 6.

8.Regulation 3BC amended

In regulation 3BC:

(a)in paragraph (b) delete “dye.” and insert:

dye; or

(b)after paragraph (b) insert:

(c)a hairspray.

9.Regulation 3D amended

In regulation 3D delete “packaging only if both the supplier and the person supplied are in the State.” and insert:

packaging —

(a)if the person supplied is in the State; and

(b)whether or not the supplier is in the State; and

(c)whether or not a contract relating to the supply is entered into in the State.

Note: The heading to amended regulation 3D is to read:

Regulations apply to supplies that occur in the State

10.Regulation 4B inserted

After regulation 4A insert:

4B.Offence in r. 4 does not apply to meat and dairy barrier bags before 1 October 2026

(1)In this regulation —

meat and dairy barrier bag means a bag without handles that is made wholly or partly from plastic and is used to carry —

(a)meat, poultry or seafood; or

(b)dairy products.

(2)Regulation 4 does not apply to the supply of a meat and dairy barrier bag unless the supply occurs on or after 1 October 2026.

11.Regulations 17EA and 17EB inserted

At the beginning of Part 3C insert:

17EA.Terms used

In this Part —

install, in relation to an item, means —

(a)assemble the item or fix the item in place; or

(b)connect the item to fixed electrical wiring, plumbing or gas pipes or associated equipment;

protective packaging means prescribed expanded plastic packaging used to protect an item, or part of an item, that is designed to be installed by a qualified installer before use;

qualified installer, in relation to an item, means a person who is the holder of a licence, permit or other authority issued under a written law authorising the holder to carry out work involving the installation of the item.

17EB.Authorised manner of disposal

For the purposes of this Part, the authorised manner of disposal of prescribed expanded plastic packaging is —

(a)disposal that complies with the requirements of an extended producer responsibility scheme that is implemented and operating under —

(i)the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2007; or

(ii)a law of the Commonwealth;

(b)disposal at premises that are —

(i)of a kind specified in the Environmental Protection Regulations 1987 Schedule 1 Part 2 as category 89 premises; and

(ii)registered under regulation 5B of those regulations;

(c)disposal at prescribed premises in respect of which a licence is in force authorising the packaging to be accepted at the premises for recycling or disposal.

12.Regulation 17F amended

After regulation 17F(3) insert:

(4)Subregulation (1) does not apply to the supply of protective packaging if the supplier believes on reasonable grounds that the person to whom the packaging is supplied —

(a)is a qualified installer; and

(b)will, after completing the installation of the item, or part of the item, that the packaging is used to protect —

(i)remove the packaging from the premises in or on which the item was installed; and

(ii)dispose of the packaging in the authorised manner.

13.Regulation 17FA inserted

After regulation 17F insert:

17FA.Offence to dispose of protective packaging

A qualified installer to whom protective packaging is supplied must not dispose of the packaging other than in the authorised manner.

Penalty: a fine of $5 000.

K. COLLERAN, Clerk of the Executive Council

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (CC BY 4.0). To view relevant information and for a link to a copy of the licence, visit www.legislation.wa.gov.au.

By Authority: GEOFF O. LAWN, Government Printer