Add Category
Cadia Gold Mine in central western New South Wales has been given a series of deadlines to show it is complying with its obligations to prevent air pollution.
Key points:
- Cadia Gold Mine has been given until June 23 to report on dust emissions
- A pollution prevention notice has been issued after heavy metals were found in residents' water and blood
- Community members have had concerns about the mine's impacts for years
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has issued a final prevention notice, outlining the steps that must be taken to reduce emissions from the site and reassure the community.
The action was prompted by blood and water testing that was ordered by local residents and returned high levels of heavy metals like lead, nickel and selenium.
Cadia has just over a week to provide an interim report on emissions from an air vent which has been a cause of concern for residents.
It must then present a final report on sampling of this vent shaft two weeks later.
"The sampling within the vent has to be undertaken by highly trained skilled operators," EPA executive director Carmen Dwyer said.
"That data will be provided to the EPA and we will draw our own conclusions from that data."
The details of the final pollution prevention notice have heartened the local community but residents say they are concerned about the sampling methods being used.
"The community now has a timeline to watch and observe and see what the reports and the results come back as," Cadia Community Sustainability Network chair Gem Green said.
"There are still a few muddy areas of who's collecting what and how that will be processed and how that will be reported on.
"We'll be keeping in close touch with the EPA to get a more definitive interpretation of how that will be done."
District monitoring
The mine must simultaneously review its existing air sampling network and produce a report identifying suitable locations for more units to be installed in the district.
Ms Dwyer said the air monitoring sites would be decided in consultation with Cadia and the community.
"We have a look at dispersion modelling and climatic modelling and we talk to our experts about where that should occur," she said.
"We're also talking with the community to understand from their perspective with their local knowledge where should some of this stuff happen.
"The EPA is looking at what monitoring needs to occur within the community and sampling to provide that assurance to the community that are living with clean air and clean water."
Health concerns
The Cadia Community Sustainability Network said many residents were still concerned about what to do to protect their health while the mine was given time to comply with its regulatory obligations.
"Health-wise, people are still very unsure what to do … we're obviously encouraging them to get a health assessment conducted," Ms Green said.
"We're probably in a little touch of no man's land at the moment, just with different government agencies sort of speaking with the community, and in the short term the community does need its water tanks cleaned and refilled."
In a statement, a spokesperson for Cadia Gold Mine said it was cooperating with the EPA and already had work in progress to ensure it complied with the prevention notice.
"We do not compromise on people's health and safety and remain firmly committed to meeting all our obligations in a way that is aligned with our values," the spokesperson said.