The first of three public hearings in the Inquiry into coal-ash waste remediation commenced in NSW Parliament on Tuesday.
The Hunter Community Environment Centre gave evidence of heavy metal pollution in surface and groundwater in major catchments in the Hunter Valley and Lake Macquarie.
The HCEC’s key recommendations included the introduction of a levy on the dumping of coal-ash, stricter limits on pollution escaping into waterways and for the NSW EPA to oversee comprehensive decontamination of the sites.
Lake Macquarie is home to the state’s largest coal-ash waste site used by Origin Energy’s Eraring power station, with the second hearing in the inquiry to be held in Lake Macquarie on October 6th.
"This inquiry will help inform the level of government liability for remediating contamination at various power stations across New South Wales, as well as the expected expenditure to perform such work," The Chair, the Hon Daniel Mookhey MLC said.
"We need to ensure best practice models for remediation for coal ash repositories are in place and being followed, in an effort to mitigate risks and liabilities for communities and the environment."
The inquiry’s will look also look at economic and employment opportunities of coal-ash reuse and the environmental and health risks of inadequate remediation.
The majority of submissions made to the inquiry raised concerns about contamination with heavy metals leaching into water, dust pollution events and the low-rate of coal-ash reuse in Australia compared to other countries.
It is estimated that over 200 million tonnes of coal-ash waste is currently stored in unlined dump sites across NSW, with an additional 3.8 million tonnes dumped per year.
Energy companies who generate coal-ash waste including Delta Electricity, Origin Energy and AGL addressed the committee first, followed by environment and community groups including the Nature Conservation Council, Environmental Justice Australia, the Coal-ash Community Alliance and the Lithgow Environment Group.
The final hearing will be held at NSW Parliament on October 16th.
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| Eraring Power Station in Lake Macquarie |
