Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Act 490 1994

The Act is a 2-part document comprised of Part One: Environmental Protection and Part Two: Pesticides Control and Management Registration of Pesticides.

In Part One, the Act establishes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that is responsible for advising the Minister on environmental policies, acting as the point of liaison between government and local or global organisations working in the environmental sector, prescribing pollution standards, co-ordinating successful waste management schemes and improving the quality of the environment through effective planning, research and awareness-raising (section 2). Offices are located in all regional capitals and districts (section 11).

The Act establishes the National Environmental Fund (sections 16-19), created to support the work of the EPA and provide environmental education to the public. The Act also outlines the enforcement and control policies (sections 12-15) of environmental regulations: the EPA has the power to issue environmental permits and notices, as well as employ environmental protection inspectors.

Part Two covers pesticides control and regulation. It details registration and licensing of pesticides (sections 28-53). It is prohibited to import, export, manufacture, sell, advertise, distribute or use pesticides unless registered in accordance with this Act; the enforcement policies carried out when this law is broken are listed in sections 54-60.