Law and policy changes in all jurisdictions, and a round-up of jobs, grants, awards and seminars.

Tracker distribution changes: From the end of February, we will be introducing new arrangements for Tracker.

Footprint subscribers will still be entitled to distribute Tracker to all relevant staff by notifying us of other email addresses in their organisation that should receive it.

However, subscribers will no longer have the option of on-forwarding it themselves to other members of staff.

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• Featured vacancies
• Upcoming events
• Federal round-up
• Jobs and appointments

Featured vacancies:

• The South Australian EPA is seeking a director of regulatory strategy and assessment ($159,150 to $244,845).
• Australian Farmers for Climate Action is seeking a chief executive officer.

Upcoming events:

• Pollution Incident Response Management Plans (PIRMP) and emergency response A February 16 conference in Sydney, hosted by the Australian Sustainable Business Group.
• Life after coal: International examples of post-coal prosperity A February 16 seminar in Fremantle, featuring Professor Peter Droege of the Liechtenstein Institute for Strategic Development, who is also Lend Lease Chair and professor of urban design at Sydney University.
• Directors' duties and climate change A February 16 seminar in Melbourne, hosted by the Future Business Council and chaired by Alan Kohler.
• Moving from GRI guidelines to standards A February 16 seminar in Melbourne, hosted by ACCSR.
• Improving residential energy efficiency A February 16 to 17 conference in Wollongong.
• Sustainable packaging think-tank A February 21 seminar and workshop workshop in Sydney, convened by the Australian Packaging Covenant.
• Energy storage leadership: Market assessment and opportunities A February 23 seminar in Melbourne, hosted by the Clean Energy Council.
• Environmental management of firefighting foam A February 21 to 23 conference hosted by Queensland's Department of Environment and Heritage Protection.
• PFAS workshop A February 23 seminar in Sydney, hosted by the National Measurement Institute, with video links available in Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.
• Environment and carbon laws and funding A February 24 seminar in Melbourne, hosted by the Australian Environment Business Network.
• Community energy congress A February 27 to 28 conference in Melbourne.
• Green cities conference A March 6 to 8 conference in Sydney.
• Meeting the challenges of a transitioning energy sector A March 7 CEDA event in Sydney, featuring Origin Energy chief executive Frank Calabria.
• The energy storage revolution A March 15 CEDA event in Sydney, featuring ARENA chief executive Ivor Frischknect.
• Clean air and load-based licensing A March 16 seminar in Sydney, hosted by the Australian Sustainable Business Group.
• Fourth annual remote area power supply conference A March 21 to 22 conference in Sydney, hosted by Informa.
• Wind industry forum A March 23 conference in Melbourne, hosted by the Clean Energy Council.

For other events, including a conference in Brisbane on business and sustainability, see the Footprint what's on listings.

National:

• Proponents must apply to the Clean Energy Regulator by February 21 to register their carbon offset projects if they intend participating in the April 5 and 6 ERF auction and don't yet have project approval.
• The government has amended regulations under its Illegal Logging Prohibition Act to endorse country-specific guidelines for PNG and Malaysia, as well as a Queensland guideline, and to update tariff codes.
• Chief scientist Alan Finkel says his electricity review will compare numerous ways to cut emissions that can put Australia on course to achieve 'net zero' sometime after 2050 (related article for subscribers only).
• A new Senate inquiry will investigate whether resource companies are retaining adequate funds for mine rehabilitation and whether the process is being adequately monitored (related article for subscribers only).
• Parliament has passed the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Amendment Bill 2016 and the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Bill 2016 (related article for subscribers only).
• Environment and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg has issued an emergency national heritage listing for St Kilda Road and environs, and has written to Victorian Premier Dan Andrews asking him to reduce the impacts of the Metro rail project on the area.
• Submissions are due by February 21 on the interim findings of the Finkel review into energy security (related article for subscribers only).
• Comment closes February 24 on a Regulation Impact Statement for tighter lighting energy efficiency standards (related article for subscribers only).

Queensland:

• The Department of Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning has launched a "market sounding" on the prospects for a large-scale solar energy project near Gladstone (related article for subscribers only).
• Testing by the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection has revealed hydrogen gas in soil in some areas outside the current excavation caution zone that is centred on Linc Energy's failed underground coal gasification demonstration project.
• Comments are due by February 24 on a state government discussion paper on its draft Protected Area Strategy, which will apply to national parks and private nature refuges.
• Comment closes February 27 on the state government's discussion paper on banning plastic shopping bags.
• Comment closes April 17 on the state government's draft water plan for the Great Artesian Basin.

NSW:

• The NSW and Victorian governments have established a panel to review the Sustainable Diversion Limit in the Murray Darling Basin Plan, which allows the 2,750 GL recovery target to be offset by up to 650 GL through projects that deliver equivalent environmental outcomes with less water.
• The state government, on behalf of the COAG Energy Council, is seeking a consultant to develop benchmarks for a NABERS energy and water rating tool for apartment blocks (related article for subscribers only).
• Comment closes March 3 on a proposal for a whole-of-government koala strategy.
• Grant opportunity: The NSW government is offering a total of $1 million in environmental research grants in a new funding round that closes March 13 (related article for subscribers only).

ACT:

• The ACT Government has declared the Eastern Grey Kangaroo a controlled native species, on the basis that it is present in numbers that are having an unacceptable environmental impact.

Victoria:

• The state government has introduced the Electricity Safety Amendment (Bushfire Mitigation Civil Penalties Scheme) Bill 2017, which will empower the director of energy safety and the Energy Minister to prosecute electricity distribution businesses that don't undertake specified bushfire safety measures.
• The administrator of the VEET energy efficiency scheme has issued updated information on building-based lighting compliance requirements.
• The state government has announced a $5 million energy efficiency program targeting low-income housing in the Latrobe Valley (related article for subscribers only).
• The Energy Legislation Amendment (Feed-In Tariffs and Improving Safety and Markets) Act 2017 has received Assent.
• The state government has named Christine Trotman (chair), Linda Weatherson and Jonathon Metcalfe as the members of its new Lower Yarra River Management Advisory Committee.
• Comment closes March 13 on a discussion paper issued as part of a review of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988.
• Grant opportunity: The state government has invited round-two applications from community groups and industry for funding under its New Energy Jobs Fund, with applications closing March 1.

Tasmania:

• EPA Tasmania has released a new report on water quality in Macquarie Harbour (related article for subscribers only).

South Australia:

• The state government will ban fire-fighting foams that contain perfluorinated chemicals known as PFAS, following similar action by Queensland (related article for subscribers only).
• Eleven major South Australian companies including Nyrstar, Adelaide Brighton and OZ Minerals plan to jointly tender for electricity on a 'technology neutral' basis (related article for subscribers only).
• The state government has issued a tender seeking a contractor to help it assess the technical and commercial feasibility of producing "green hydrogen" in South Australia (related article for subscribers only).

Western Australia:

• Nominations are now open for the Department of Mines and Petroleum's Golden Gecko environment and community partnership awards.
• CSIRO has lodged a referral with the state's EPA for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope, which will consist of about 130,000 antennas in 512 clusters and, in conjunction with components hosted by South Africa, will comprise the world's largest radio telescope.

Northern Territory:

• The Territory government has launched an inquiry into approvals to extract water that were issued by the former Country Liberal government (related article for subscribers only).

Jobs and appointments:

• Real estate company JLL is seeking a Sydney-based national operations and sustainability supervisor.
• The Snowy Monaro Regional Council is seeking a director of environment and sustainability.
• VicRoads is seeking an Echuca-based senior environmental officer.
• Coffey is seeking a Brisbane-based contaminated sites consultant.
• The ACT Planning and Environment Directorate has a temporary vacancy for a senior manager of its carbon neutral program ($116,570 to $131,229).
• The WA Water Corporation is seeking a team leader, environmental impact assessment.
• Melbourne's City of Monash has a vacancy for a sustainability officer (two days per week).
• Queensland's Department of Transport and Main Roads is seeking a Rockhampton-based environmental officer ($57,310 to $84,150).
• EPA Victoria is seeking a senior legal policy officer ($90,890 to $100,429).