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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 1055 asked in the Legislative Council on 15 March 2018 by Hon Robin Chapple

Question Directed to the: Minister for Environment
Parliament: 40 Session: 1


Question

(1) I refer to the issue of particulate matter being emitted from the Cockburn Cement operation in Munster, and I ask:
(a) is the Minister aware that particulate matter is being frequently emitted at night from the premises operated by Cockburn Cement Limited in Russell Road, Munster;
(b) is the Minister aware that the particulate matter appears to be strongly alkaline and appears to have caused damage to resident's property in the area;
(c) is the Minister aware that the particulate matter appears to take on cement-like qualities when it becomes moist;
(d) is the Minister aware that numerous complaints by residents have been made to the department for many years about this issue and with requests for action to be taken by the department:
(i) if no to (d), why not;
(e) is the Minister aware that no prosecutions have been commenced by the department in respect of alleged breaches of conditions 21 and 22 of the present licence conditions relating to the Cockburn Cement in respect of any emissions;
(f) is the Minister aware that no prosecutions have been commenced by the department against the licensee of the premises in respect of alleged breaches of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 concerning the emission of highly alkaline particulate matter; and
(g) is the Minister aware that Jim Houlahan, a resident of Beeliar, made written complaints to the department about the emission of particulate matter which occurred on or about 30 January 2018, 22-23 February 2018 and 2-3 March 2018 at his home:
(i) if yes to (g), has an inspector or other departmental officer attended in person to Mr Houlahan's address regarding his complaint:
(A) if yes to (g)(i), on what date(s) did the officer attend the residence of Mr Houlahan;
(B) if yes to (g)(i), what evidence was collected and, in particular, what samples were collected at the site and what photographic, video, written statements or other evidence was collected at the site;
(ii) what steps are currently being taken to investigate the complaints:
(A) if none to (g)(ii), why are no steps currently being undertaken; and
(iii) will the department provide a written report to Mr Houlahan upon the completion of an investigation into each of the complaints:
(A) if no to (g)(iii), why not?
(2) I refer to the premises operated by Cockburn Cement on Russel Road, and I ask:
(a) is the Minister aware that the premises operated by Cockburn Cement Limited in Russell Road, Munster is the only premises in the greater Perth metropolitan area licensed under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 which is authorised by the department to burn coal;
(b) is the Minister aware of the dangers to human health of burning coal particularly in highly urbanised environments;
(c) does the Minister believe that coal should continue to be used as a source of fuel at the premises:
(i) if yes to (c), why; and
(d) will the Minister direct the department to mandate as a matter of Government policy that coal shall no longer be used as a source of fuel by premises licensed under the Environmental Protection Act 1986 which operate in the greater Perth metropolitan area:
(i) if no to (d), why not?
(3) I refer to the National Energy Regulator, and I ask:
(a) is the Minister aware that Adelaide Brighton Limited, the parent company of Cockburn Cement Ltd which operates premises in Russell Road, Munster is seeking to prevent the National Energy Regulator from publishing data about carbon dioxide emissions from the premises and its other Western Australian operations:
(i) if no to (a), is the Minister aware of correspondence sent to his office recently about this issue;
(b) is the Minister aware that other entities including Western Australia’s major gas and aluminium producers reporting carbon dioxide emissions to the National Energy Regulator have agreed to the publication of their greenhouse emissions;
(c) is the Minister aware of any reason why Cockburn Cement Ltd and its parent company should be exempt from publication by the national Energy Regulator of data as to its carbon dioxide emissions; and
(d) has the Minister or the department, under section 27 (1)(b) of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 (C/th) or otherwise, sought to obtain the carbon dioxide baseline data from the National Energy Regulator relating to premises in Western Australia owned or operated by Adelaide Brighton Limited or Cockburn Cement Limited:
(i) if no to (d), why not?

Answered on 11 April 2018

(1)(a) Yes. The Cockburn Cement Limited Environmental Licence has limits for allowable particulate matter emissions.

(1)(b)-(d) Yes.

(1)(d)(i) Not applicable.

(1)(e) Yes. The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation amended Cockburn Cement Limited’s Environmental Licence in December 2016 after a review of the licence. As part of the amendment, conditions 21 and 22 of the old licence were replaced with new conditions for the control of dust, including requirements for ambient dust monitoring at the premises boundary. The amended Licence is currently subject to appeal. As I am responsible for determining the appeals, it is not appropriate for me to comment further on the matter at this time.

(1)(f) A prosecution was commenced against Cockburn Cement Limited in 2011 for pollution.

(1)(g) Yes.

(1)(g)(i) No.

(1)(g)(i)(A)–(g)(i)(B) Not applicable.

(1)(g)(ii)–(g)(ii)(A) Mr Houlahan’s complaints were recorded by the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation as part of the ongoing assessment of the premises.

(1)(g)(iii) No.

(1)(g)(iii)(A) The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation has advised Mr Houlahan of its current actions concerning Cockburn Cement Limited. The Department encourages people to subscribe to its community updates page on this matter.

(2)(a) Yes.

(2)(b)–(d) There is no current requirement for the Cockburn Cement Limited premises to stop burning coal, and I am not aware of any current proposal from Cockburn Cement Limited to stop burning coal. The amended licence considered risks and impacts from emissions from the premises and applied conditions commensurate with the risks. The amended licence issued on 9 December 2016 is currently under appeal. As I am responsible for determining the appeals, it is not appropriate for me to comment further on the matter at this time.

(3)(a)–(d) The reporting of greenhouse gas emissions under the Commonwealth National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007 is regulated by the Australian Government Clean Energy Regulator. Questions relating to these matters should be directed to the Clean Energy Regulator.

(3)(a)(i) Yes