State of the Environment

2006

Indicator: LD-37 Emissions from activities that derive contributions from the land

Data

NPI reported emissions from mining and agriculture: total reported emissions
Year Substance (million kg)
Particulate matter Sulfur dioxide Oxides of nitrogen Carbon monoxide Volatile organic compounds Ammonia Total number of facilities reporting
2001-2002 361.64 233.09 138.71 66.04 63.79 33.14 520
2002-2003 343.56 220.57 151.5 76.5 58.04 36.8 668
2003-2004 359.1 271.7 149.23 84.43 59.2 55.4 792
NPI reported emissions from mining and agriculture: average emissions from reporting facilities
Year Average of substance (thousand kg) emitted across facilities
Particulate matter Sulfur dioxide Oxides of nitrogen Carbon monoxide Volatile organic compounds Ammonia
2001-2002 695.46 448.25 266.75 127.0 122.67 63.73
2002-2003 514.31 330.2 226.8 114.52 86.89 55.09
2003-2004 453.41 343.06 188.42 106.60 74.75 69.95

Note: Emissions of substances from offshore mining activities have been deducted from totals.

The principal sectors responsible for these highest emissions are:

Source: National Pollutant Inventory 

What the data mean

The substances selected for the above tables are the six substances which are emitted in largest quantities by reporting facilities in industries which extract contributions to human life from the land (ie mining and intensive agriculture).

The trend seems to show an increase in total emissions of these substances from these facilities since 2001, except for volatile organic compounds which have dropped slightly. However, the number of facilities reporting each year has also steadily increased. When emissions are averaged across reporting facilities, the picture is less clear. There has been a steady drop in average particulate matter, oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds over the period, a drop in sulphur dioxide in 2002-2003, rising again in 2004 (although not as high as in 2001-2002), and a drop in ammonia in 2002-2003, rising in 2003-2004 to higher levels than those reported in 2001-2002.

The NPI ranks substances by risk. Environmental hazard is assessed on the basis of toxicity, the substance’s ability to remain active in the environment and whether it accumulates in living organisms. Health hazard is assessed on the basis of toxicity and the substance’s tendency to cause cancer or birth defects. Total hazard is calculated as a multiplication of hazard by exposure, so that a highly toxic substance where there is little likelihood of exposure has a low risk ranking as does a mildly toxic substance where there is a higher likelihood of exposure.

For example, on the NPI scale of 1-3, where 3 is highly harmful and 0 is negligibly harmful, ammonia scores a rating of 1 (merely “harmful”). However, combined with the likelihood of exposure, its total hazard score is quite high at 2.5.

Hazard score for human health and the environment, and total hazard score, for the principal emissions from intensive agriculture and mining are as follows:

Substance Human health hazard Environmental health hazard Total hazard
Ammonia 1.0 1.5 2.5
Volatile organic compounds: Not assessed Not assessed Not assessed
Carbon monoxide 2.0 0.8 2.8
Oxides of nitrogen 1.5 3.0 4.5
Particulates 1.2 1.3 2.5
Sulphur dioxide 1.5 1.3 2.8

Source: Environment Australia 1999, National Pollutant Inventory, Environment Australia, Canberra.

Data Limitations

At this stage the apparent steady increase in reported emissions from land-based activities (intensive livestock production and mining are the only ones that are required to report to the NPI) over the years of the NPI is probably more indicative of facilities coming on board with reporting than of actual increases in emissions. This also means that the emissions data currently reported to the NPI are likely to be a very substantial underestimate of actual emissions.

A reduction in average emissions may reflect that smaller facilities whose emissions are generally lower are the ones that have commenced reporting more recently. However, an increase in average as well as total emissions suggests that it is emissions, as well as number of facilities reporting, that are increasing.

Ultimately, however, it is expected that the trends in reported emissions will be indicative of changes in actual emissions.

The data relate only to emissions from facilities that emit sufficient quantities of pollutants to be required to report under the NPI.

Extensive agriculture, especially activities such as land clearing and use of pesticides, fertilisers and agricultural combustion engines, also produce emissions but these sources are exempt from reporting to the NPI. Data on these emissions are not available from other sources.

Data for the NPI are compiled from facility reports and are only as good as the data provided. Apparent anomalies may be due to errors in the data, or to unusual events at the facilities during the reporting year. Only the emissions, not the activities or events responsible for them, are routinely reported to the NPI.

Issues for which this is an indicator and why

Land — Direct pressure of human activities on the land - Pollution to and from the land 

This indicator is specifically to show the pollution costs of the contributions the land makes to human life. Other anthropogenic land-based sources of emissions (eg industry and human settlements) are therefore not relevant to this issue. The NPI gives some indication of large quantities of various pollutants that are emitted from identifiable land-based activity sources such as intensive agriculture and mining.

Other indicators for this issue:

Human Settlements — Pressures created by human settlements on the environment - Waste 

Toxic substances generated by human activities in deriving product from the land are a pressure created by human settlements.

Other indicators for this issue:

Key

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