163General powers of environmental officers

163 General powers of environmental officers (1) Subject to section 164, an environmental officer may do any of the (a) enter any land or premises; (b) move any vehicle; (c) inspect any land or premises and anything on the land or (d) search any land or premises entered and anything found there; (e) take photographs and make sketches or other records of land or premises or things found on land or premises; (f) take photographs of any person on or in land or premises; (g) make recordings in any medium, including audio, visual and audio-visual recordings, of land or premises or things found on (h) inspect and take copies of documents and records; (i) seize any documents and any equipment required to access any documents; (j) dig up any land; (k) operate any equipment; (l) bring equipment or materials on to the land or premises and install and maintain equipment or materials; (m) measure anything, or take samples of anything on land or (n) examine or test any equipment or machinery or other thing; (o) require a person to produce for inspection an environmental approval, environmental (mining) licence or environmental audit report or a document of a class prescribed by regulation or a copy of the document; (p) require a relevant person to: (i) provide the person's name, address and date of birth and evidence of these; and

Environment Protection Act 2019 154 (ii) if the relevant person is acting as a member of a partnership – provide the name and address and telephone number of any other partner in the partnership; and (iii) if the relevant person is acting as a member of the committee of management of an unincorporated body – provide the name and address and telephone number of any other member of the committee of management; (q) require a person on the land or premises to give the environmental officer reasonable assistance to exercise or perform the environmental officer's powers or functions including: (i) operate any computer or other equipment; and (ii) provide any access or assistance to access any computer or other equipment or any service; (r) authorise a person to provide assistance to an environmental officer in the exercise or performance of the environmental officer's powers or functions; (s) do any other act or thing necessary for, or incidental to, the exercise of a power mentioned in this Division. associated person, of a person, means: (a) if the person is a member of a partnership – a partner of the person; or (b) if the person is a member of and acting on behalf of an unincorporated body – a member of the committee of management of the body; or (c) an employee, agent, licensee, contractor or subcontractor of the person or of a partnership or body mentioned in (a) a person who is on, or in the vicinity of, the land or premises; or (b) a person who the environmental officer reasonably suspects is travelling to or from the land or premises; or

Environment Protection Act 2019 155 (c) a person who the environmental officer reasonably suspects is the owner or occupier of the land or premises; or (ca) a person who the environmental officer reasonably suspects is the mining operator if the land or premises is part of a mining site; or (d) a person who the environmental officer reasonably suspects is a person who is under investigation for a suspected contravention of this Act; or (e) a person who the environmental officer reasonably suspects is a person who is an associated person of a person mentioned in paragraph (c) or (d).