Specialty Technical Publishers (STP) and Specialty Technical Consultants (STC) Publish Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) Audit Protocol for New Zealand

USA - English

• USA - English

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Aug. 28, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Specialty Technical Publishers (STP) and Specialty Technical Consultants (STC) announce the availability of the newly updated International Audit Protocol Consortium (IAPC) EHS audit protocol for New Zealand. Leading companies around the world use IAPC EHS audit protocols to understand the scope of their EHS regulatory obligations and rapidly collect, share, archive, and export audit findings in a cost effective manner. IAPC EHS audit protocols are now prepared by STC in partnership with STP and continue to focus on those national (plus, in some cases, regional or provincial) EHS requirements that have site-specific application for manufacturing operations. As a leading EHS management consulting firm with a global network of experienced EHS teaming partners, STC has indepth knowledge and technical expertise of local/regional EHS requirements.

STP and STC maintain leading-edge EHS audit protocols for more than 30 jurisdictions. The protocol documents are written in English and are available in MS Word, Adobe Acrobat and Excel formats, as well as through STP's web-based portal or can be integrated into an existing company platform. Using the protocols' custom templates and advanced functionality features, auditors can easily track audit findings and manage data over time to improve compliance, risk management and safety performance. In addition, STP's formatting is compatible with leading risk management and sustainability platform providers.

Highlights of selected legislation covered in the newly developed protocol include:

• The "Ozone Layer Protection Regulations 1996" were amended to revoke the conditional prohibition on the import of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC), which previously allowed imports of HCFC if a permit was obtained and allocations were complied with. The import of HCFC is now prohibited unless an exemption is granted.
• The "Hazardous Substances (Health and Safety Reform Revocations) Regulations 2017" revoked, in whole or in part, various regulations made under the "Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996." The revoked regulations have been replaced either by notices issued by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) or by provisions under the new "Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017." The new "Health and Safety atWork (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017" bring together most workplace requirements for hazardous substances into a single regulation, while previously these requirements were contained in various regulations, group standards, transfer notices and individual substance approvals These regulations came into effect beginning 1 September 2017 (with some provisions having later effective dates).
• The "Hazardous Substances (Emergency Management) Regulations," the "Hazardous Substances (Tracking) Regulations," the "Hazardous Substances (Exempt Laboratories) Regulations," and the "Hazardous Substances (Compressed Gases) Regulations," were all revoked on 1 January 2018 and have been replaced by various provisions contained in the "Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017."
• The "Hazardous Substances (Identification) Regulations" were revoked effective 1 January 2018, and EPA issued two notices to replace these regulations, the "Hazardous Substances (Minimum Degrees of Hazard) Notice 2017" and the "Hazardous Substances (Classification) Notice 2017." These notices now constitute the classification system for hazardous substances in New Zealand. The "Hazardous Substances (Classification) Notice 2017" is essentially the same as the previous "Hazardous Substances (Classification) Regulations 2001," but contains updated references to regulations.
• The "Hazardous Substances (Packaging) Regulations 2001" were revoked on 1 January 2018 and have been replaced by the "Hazardous Substances (Packaging) Notice 2017" and also by provisions in the "Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017."
• The new "Hazardous Substances (Disposal) Notice 2017," which went into effect on 1 December 2017, updates and replaces the disposal provisions in the "Hazardous Substances (Disposal) Regulations 2001," which were revoked as part of the reforms in the regulation of hazardous substances in New Zealand.
• The "Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1985" were amended in order revoke certain general health and safety provisions of these regulations that are redundant because their substance is provided for by regulations in the "Health and Safety at Work (General Risk and Workplace Management) Regulations 2016."
• The "Radiation Safety Act 2016" became effective on 7 March 2017 and repealed and replaced the "Radiation Protection Act 1965" and the "Radiation Protection Regulations 1982" on that date. In addition, new "Radiation Safety Regulations" were made to support the new Act. These Regulations establish the application fees for the various licenses and consents that can be granted under the Act, and also include application requirements, conditional exemptions, and maximum periods for licenses and consent.
• The "Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fire Safety, Evacuation Procedures, and Evacuation Schemes) Regulations 2018" came into force on 1 July 2018 and replace the "Fire Safety and Evacuation of Buildings Regulations 2006," which have been revoked. The new regulations will impact both owners and tenants of buildings by making several key changes to requirements relating to building evacuations. In addition, the "Fire Service Act 1975" was repealed on 1 July 2017 and has been replaced by the "Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) Act 2017," which unifies Fire Services by establishing the new "FENZ."
• The "Hazardous Substances (Storage and Disposal of Persistent Organic Pollutants) Notice 2004" was updated to set requirements relating to storage and disposal of PCBs similar to other persistent organic pollutants. PCBs are regulated as a persistent organic pollutant and are banned in New Zealand under the "Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act." These requirements have been established because it is likely that small amounts of PCBs will continue to be found and there will be a need to manage storage and disposal.
• The "Health and Safety at Work (Major Hazard Facilities) Regulations 2016" has been amended to add facilities operated by the Armed Forces where munitions are stored to the list of exempt facilities. The amendments also clarify the timing of the required notifications to WorkSafe.

For more information on all International EHS audit protocols offered by STP and STC click here.

About Specialty Technical Publishers
Specialty Technical Publishers (STP) produces technical resource guides covering environmental, health & safety, transportation, accounting, business practices, standards and law, offering comprehensive guidance on key compliance and regulatory issues. STP is a division of Glacier Media Inc., a Canadian information communications company that provides primary and essential information in print, electronic and online media. Glacier's Business and Professional Information Group publishes directories, technical manuals, research and development materials, medical education, electronic databases, investment information and specialty websites.

About Specialty Technical Consultants
Specialty Technical Consultants, Inc. (STC) is a specialized management consulting firm working to enhance environmental health and safety (EHS) performance. Through its consulting services, STC partners with clients to strengthen management systems' design and implementation, and identifies needs and implements solutions to meet business objectives. Services provided include: EHS compliance support; risk assessment; EHS auditing; corporate responsibility and sustainability; EHS management systems development and implementation; EHS regulatory information tools; and EHS training.

STC is certified as a Woman-Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) and the Supplier Clearinghouse for the California Public Utilities Commission, and as a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program.

SOURCE Specialty Technical Publishers