Environmental Policy Officer – Maritime Emergency Management

The role of an Environmental Policy Officer has two key focuses - providing technical advice and interpretation of marine pollution policy and legislation, and working in the prevention, preparedness and response to marine pollution incidents. A good working relationship with other Queensland, Australian and inter-state government agencies is important for the role.

The Transport Operations Marine Pollution Act 1995 regulates ship-sourced pollution in Queensland, with rules covering pollutants such as oil, chemical, sewage and waste which may be on board a ship or boat. Many of these rules come from international laws, and some apply from a small tinny all the way up to an international cruise ship or bulk carrier.

Maritime Safety Queensland (MSQ) is the response agency for maritime environmental emergencies under the Queensland Coastal Contingency Action Plan, and a response partner under the National Plan for Maritime Environmental Emergencies. Whilst thankfully major ship groundings and oil spills are uncommon, training and practicing is very important to be ready to respond.