Open Letter to Maribyrnong Councillors & Katie Hall MP, State Member for Footscray
Recent fires are a reminder of how much the western suburbs have been a dumping ground for careless and greedy industry. This legacy has been responsible for the significant long term deterioration of air quality in the Inner West, with all its associated and well documented health consequences.
Not surprisingly, the EPA has recently approved an application by Steel Cement Pty Ltd to expand their existing slag grinding facility in Yarraville. The facility will produce 1.5 million tonnes of cement per year; with a planned 370 truck movements a day. The factory will be grinding slag 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, all of within 1km of residents. The release of Respirable Crystalline Silica PM2.5 ‘dust’ from “fugitive dust emissions” is a real health risk, as is the dust released from trucks as they travel through our streets. Additionally, the unloading of raw materials using heavy fuel oil will produce 5.5 tonnes of PM2.5, which long term exposure associates with a range of major health effects. The gas powered factory will also produce 1.9 tonnes of CO2 per hour, for thousands of hours a year.
The EPA is also currently considering a new licence application for the storage of dangerous goods in Coode Island. The proposed facility will store approximately 230 tanks, containing foodstuffs, combustible liquids and dangerous goods, 1.2km from the Yarraville Village. The EPA will be making an assessment of this licence application over the next few months, with a decision expected later this year. This sort of application is of great concern as there has been no transparency about the application and what the potential hazards might be.
Furthermore, these two applications in such close proximity to residential areas, seems to undermine the proposition – established by the Environment Protection Act 2017 – that “harm” may arise from “the cumulative effect” arising from other “activities or factors”. The cumulative effect of a combination of polluting activities in the area is well established.
Last year, Maribyrnong City Council declared a health emergency, noting the impacts of air and noise pollution in the inner west, including the excessive rates of illness and hospitalisation in our municipality due to air pollution.
We the undersigned community organisations ask that our local and state representatives take a stand against the continued expansion of heavy polluting industries in the inner west. This is especially pertinent in the context of the state governments projections for increasing population density in the City of Maribyrnong.
We request that Maribyrnong Council and the state member organise a “town hall” forum to discuss these issues.
