Discrepancies

A discrepancy occurs if the information on a transport certificate (TC) does not accurately reflect the transport of the waste from the consignor to the receiving facility. Some types of discrepancy can be manually recorded and others are automatically generated in the OWT.

Record discrepancy on transport certificate

A receiving facility would record a discrepancy on the TC in OWT because of

• incorrect waste details – the waste details in the TC differ from the actual waste details
• change of consignor – the consignor details in the TC differ from the actual consignor details
• change of transporter – the transporter details in the TC differ from the actual transporter details

When the facility records a discrepancy in the online waste tracking system (OWT), it does not need to report it separately to the EPA.

To record a discrepancy on the electronic TC

• Search for and select the TC
• Click the ‘Update TC’ button 
• Click the ‘Record discrepancy’ button on the ‘Update TC’ screen
• Adjust any waste details that are incorrect 
• Adjust any consignor details that are incorrect
• Adjust any transporter details that are incorrect and indicate whether a change of transporter was authorised or expected

When recording a discrepancy in the consignor or transporter details, you can search the list of consignors or transporters in the OWT by clicking on the ‘View’ icon.

Following data validation checks, the EPA may contact the consignor or the receiving facility to confirm or amend discrepancy details.

Automatic report

The OWT automatically records a discrepancy when

• the waste load amount recorded on arrival at a receiving facility differs by 20% or more from the amount recorded at pick-up
• the waste load arrives at the receiving facility with no accompanying paper TC - the exception report is created when the 'No paper TC' box is checked when recording arrival of the waste
• a TC is created without a consignment authorisation (CA) - the exception report is created when a ‘TC without CA’ is created in the OWT
• a waste load is rejected - the exception report is created when the rejection is recorded

Users can monitor the status of exception reports using the ‘Exception monitoring’ function.

• Open means the EPA is reviewing the exception
• Closed means the EPA has reviewed the exception and any appropriate action has been taken

Differing waste amount

Waste amounts are recorded at pick-up and again when the waste arrives at the receiving facility. If the difference between the amount at pick-up and arrival varies by more than 20%, an exception report is automatically created by the system. As long as the waste amount is recorded in the online system at pick-up and arrival, there is no need to report the variation in amount separately.

Proposed delivery period

The proposed delivery period is the number of days from when waste is picked up from the producer's premises to when it is expected to arrive at the receiving facility. OWT enables the proposed delivery period to be specified on the CA and the TC.

The default is 2 days for waste transported by truck within NSW or from neighbouring states. It can be changed if the delivery period is expected to take longer for example for waste transport by ship, or during busy periods.

If waste does not arrive within the proposed delivery period and pick-up has been recorded in the OWT at pick-up, the system alerts the EPA.

If pick-up was not recorded in the online system, the consignor, transporter or receiving facility should contact the EPA if the waste has not arrived within 3 days of the proposed delivery period.