Episode notes
What makes a good regulator? Gunnar and Hammond are joined for the second time by Jason Scarborough, former NSW EPA officer and founder of JS Regulatory Services and Echidna, to talk about how regulation should actually work. They discuss behaviour change, regulatory transparency, poorly designed KPIs, explain the term "regulatory capture", the “fit and proper person” test and why vague regulatory language can create problems. This episode is particularly relevant to regulators and anyone in ...
Chapters
Tap a chapter to play from there.
Podcast
Below the Surface
Gunnar Haid & James Hammond · Tech & Science · English
Casual chats between an Austrian and Australian on environmental topics that usually don't get talked about openly. Hosts Gunnar Haid and James Hammond set out to provide a light-hearted and thought-provoking look into Contaminated Land, Resource Recovery, Ecology and general environmental issues
More from Below the Surface All episodes →
-
E48 · 18 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 6 min
#48 The Basics: Heritage
What makes something worth keeping, and who gets to decide? In this episode of our The Basics Series, Gunnar and Hammond talk with heritage specialist Dr MacLaren North. They cover what heritage actually means, the differences between built, archaeological and Aboriginal cultural heritage, how heritage significance is assessed, and why the process can sometimes be surprisingly subjective. They also look at how heritage considerations affect development, why getting specialist advice early mat...
-
E46 · 28 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
#47 The EIANZ
Who keeps environmental professionals honest, and what happens when they get it wrong? Gunnar and James open with a deceptively simple question: would you take a guaranteed $50,000 or risk it on a coin toss for $1 million? Their answers lead to a revealing conversation about risk, certainty, running a business and how personal circumstances shape financial decisions. Then the episode switches to newly appointed EIANZ President Fiona Gainsford about the growing influence of professional certif...
-
E46 · 17 Jul 2026 · 47 min
#46 The Career Path
What does a career in the environmental industry actually look like, and how do you know when it is time for a change? That change can range from minor adjustment in your life and your expectations and goals to a big one like changing jobs or even careers altogether. Gunnar and Hammond are joined by career coach Kellie Guenther to discuss career pathways, professional development, leadership, mentoring and workplace culture. They also explore the pressures facing young professionals, ...
-
26 Jun 2026 · 54 min
#45 The Disclaimer
Disclaimers in our reports. Useless fluff or necessary ass covering? Who better to discuss this than Sarah Mansfield (LinkedIn) who is returning to Below the Surface and almost immediately raises the bar for all future lawyer and engineer jokes. Sarah, Gunnar and Hammond tackle P&O cruise insults, ALGA glory, puppies, and why a useful “How to Read This Report” section may be better than hiding AI created legal fog at the back. Other subjects: Report reliance, executive summaries, co...
-
E44 · 5 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
#44 The Duplicate Pushback
In Episode #30 The Duplicate, Gunnar famously declared that duplicate soil samples in heterogeneous fill are useless. Risk assessor Belle Casement of Terravale Consulting heard the episode… and decided Gunnar needed correcting. 😲 In this nerd-out episode, they discuss QA/QC, dodgy duplicates, lab uncertainty, conservative risk assessments, and whether the typical QC sections in contaminated land reports are actually science or just expensive pseudo scientific fluff we do to please regulators....
Take it with you
The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.
