DUST MANAGEMENT —
AIR QUALITY MONITORING —
PORT HEDLAND
223. Hon JIM CHOWN to the Minister for Environment:
I refer to a joint media statement
made by Minister MacTiernan and Premier McGowan in October 2018 about Port Hedland's
ongoing dust issues, which states —
Full responsibility for operating and
maintaining the air quality monitoring network will be transferred to the
Department of Water and Environmental Regulation �
(1) On what date
did the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation take over
responsibility for air quality monitoring in Port Hedland?
(2) Can the
minister please table the results of the air quality monitoring that has been
carried out by the department?
(3) Does the
department currently use light detection and ranging, and fingerprinting
technology to identify the volume and content of emissions in Port Hedland?
(4) If no to (3) —
(a) why not; and
when did the practice cease; and
(b) please outline
what monitoring devices/technology the department is currently utilising to
monitor air quality in Port Hedland and the extent of the monitoring.
Hon STEPHEN DAWSON
replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1)–(4) The
responsibility for operating and maintaining the Port Hedland ambient air
quality monitoring network has not yet been transferred to the Department of
Water and Environmental Regulation. The department is working to transfer management of the network as soon as practicable.
Timing is subject to an agreement being reached between DWER and the
Port Hedland Industries Council to ensure costs are covered by industry and the procurement of services to
operate and maintain the network. PHIC will continue to operate the
monitoring network until the transfer occurs. The department undertook a short-term
air quality monitoring campaign in Port Hedland during 2017. The campaign used
a light detection and ranging—LiDAR—instrument and convention
monitors. I table the department's report.
[See paper 3682.]