Wood v Adelaide Resource Recovery Pty Ltd

The complainant appealed to the Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia against the acquittal of Adelaide Resource Recovery Pty Ltd (ARR) in the Environment Court. The dispute concerned whether ARR had breached conditions of its environmental licence by receiving and storing waste materials that were not permitted under its licence. Specifically, the complainant alleged that ARR had received and stockpiled waste that did not fall within the categories of "Commercial and Industrial Waste (General)" or "Construction and Demolition Waste (Mixed)" as defined in the licence and associated guidelines.

The legal issues before the Full Court were whether the Environment Court had erred in its findings regarding the nature of the waste received by ARR and whether the waste fell within the permitted categories under the licence. This involved interpreting the definitions of "waste," "Commercial and Industrial Waste (General)," and "Construction and Demolition Waste (Mixed)" as set out in the licence and the incorporated EPA Waste Guidelines September 2009. The court also considered the definition of "waste" under section 3(1) of the *Environment Protection Act 1993* (SA) and the potential for an environment protection policy to expand this definition.

The Full Court, in allowing the appeal, reasoned that the material in the stockpile constituted "waste" within the meaning of the Act. The court found that the Environment Court had erred in its interpretation of the licence conditions and the definitions of the permitted waste streams. Specifically, the court clarified the distinction between "Construction and Demolition Waste (Mixed)" and "Commercial and Industrial Waste (General)," noting that the former could contain a certain percentage of foreign material, including plastics and timber, provided it did not predominantly consist of such materials or municipal solid waste. The court concluded that the material in question, based on its composition, should have been classified as "Commercial and Industrial Waste (General)" and therefore was permitted under the licence.

The Full Court set aside the acquittal of ARR on count 1 and substituted a conviction. The matter was remitted to the Environment Court for sentencing and to deal with costs.