This letter has been sent to Mark McGowan, Rita Saffioti, the Leader of the
Opposition, Mike Nahan, Liza Harvey and the Fairfax online publication ‘WA TODAY.
DATE AUGUST 16, 2017
Hon. Mark McGowan
Premier
cc
Hon. Rita Saffioti
Minister for Planning
Dear Premier and Minister
Your Ref :- ROE 8 / ALLAWUNA FARM LANDFILL YORK
There is enough evidence to suggest that there are certain similarities between these two intensely emotive projects that require both your attention and intervention.
You overrode the previous government, and its Department of Environmental Regulation’s decision, to seriously damage the precious Beeliar wetlands through the proposed highway extension- known as Roe 8.
The former SITA/SUEZ application, to the same department, has the intent of using pristine farmland, located in a designated water catchment area, in a high-risk earthquake zone, in an area of temperature inversion, near a historic freshwater spring, St. Ronan’s Well, close to WA’s oldest inland town, to dump massive amounts of domestic and industrial waste, including asbestos.
Homeland Security laws in nearly every other Western society would demand that food security and quality is far more important than this environmentally damaging proposal.
If you wish to make political capital of the fact that the former Minister for Water and current parliamentary electorate representative for Central Wheatbelt, Mia Davies, did nothing to assist the community of York to prevent this deleterious project (in both an economic and environmental sense), then feel free to do so.
You may also recall in 2005-06, Premier Geoff Gallop, followed by Alan Carpenter and including David Templeman MP (who was born and raised in Northam) were advised in no uncertain terms by the then Avon Electorate incumbent, Max Trenorden, that no Perth waste would be dumped between Northam and Meckering.
Your Core Consultative Committee including Co-Chairman, Lee Bell, was made to look foolish in their choice of a site near the Avon Industrial Park for exactly the same reasons that make Allawuna Farm a ridiculous option. The water table, seismic disturbance location and temperature inversion are all similar.
Added to this was the negative public reaction that saw this waste dump located elsewhere.
Then there is the matter of waste transportation, from the Metropolitan Area to the Allawuna Farm site with the former Premier, Colin Barnett agreeing there is a problem.
In the case of Allawuna Farm, massive transport vehicles, in large daily movement volumes, would put private road users at risk along a 40 kilometre stretch of the narrow Great Southern Highway.
SUEZ decided not to proceed with the Allawuna Landfill project citing lack of economic viability.
Now a tin pot Queensland garbage bin manufacturer, Alkina International, has requested to take over the SUEZ licence by lodging an application with your replacement authority, the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation.
Given one of the largest international Waste Management companies, SUEZ, final official decision was that the project was uneconomic, and based on a public summary of Alkina International’s financial situation and its known expertise, it could not take up this licence without the support of much larger companies in the waste recycling industry.
I would hope you give this environmental imbroglio the attention it deserves.
Yours sincerely
David Taylor.
DATE AUGUST 16, 2017
Hon. Mark McGowan
Premier
cc
Hon. Rita Saffioti
Minister for Planning
Dear Premier and Minister
Your Ref :- ROE 8 / ALLAWUNA FARM LANDFILL YORK
There is enough evidence to suggest that there are certain similarities between these two intensely emotive projects that require both your attention and intervention.
You overrode the previous government, and its Department of Environmental Regulation’s decision, to seriously damage the precious Beeliar wetlands through the proposed highway extension- known as Roe 8.
The former SITA/SUEZ application, to the same department, has the intent of using pristine farmland, located in a designated water catchment area, in a high-risk earthquake zone, in an area of temperature inversion, near a historic freshwater spring, St. Ronan’s Well, close to WA’s oldest inland town, to dump massive amounts of domestic and industrial waste, including asbestos.
Homeland Security laws in nearly every other Western society would demand that food security and quality is far more important than this environmentally damaging proposal.
If you wish to make political capital of the fact that the former Minister for Water and current parliamentary electorate representative for Central Wheatbelt, Mia Davies, did nothing to assist the community of York to prevent this deleterious project (in both an economic and environmental sense), then feel free to do so.
You may also recall in 2005-06, Premier Geoff Gallop, followed by Alan Carpenter and including David Templeman MP (who was born and raised in Northam) were advised in no uncertain terms by the then Avon Electorate incumbent, Max Trenorden, that no Perth waste would be dumped between Northam and Meckering.
Your Core Consultative Committee including Co-Chairman, Lee Bell, was made to look foolish in their choice of a site near the Avon Industrial Park for exactly the same reasons that make Allawuna Farm a ridiculous option. The water table, seismic disturbance location and temperature inversion are all similar.
Added to this was the negative public reaction that saw this waste dump located elsewhere.
Then there is the matter of waste transportation, from the Metropolitan Area to the Allawuna Farm site with the former Premier, Colin Barnett agreeing there is a problem.
In the case of Allawuna Farm, massive transport vehicles, in large daily movement volumes, would put private road users at risk along a 40 kilometre stretch of the narrow Great Southern Highway.
SUEZ decided not to proceed with the Allawuna Landfill project citing lack of economic viability.
Now a tin pot Queensland garbage bin manufacturer, Alkina International, has requested to take over the SUEZ licence by lodging an application with your replacement authority, the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation.
Given one of the largest international Waste Management companies, SUEZ, final official decision was that the project was uneconomic, and based on a public summary of Alkina International’s financial situation and its known expertise, it could not take up this licence without the support of much larger companies in the waste recycling industry.
I would hope you give this environmental imbroglio the attention it deserves.
Yours sincerely
David Taylor.
PLEASE NOTE THIS CORRESPONDENCE
DAVID WALLACE
President
CC
PAUL MARTIN.
CEO
SHIRE OF YORK.
CC Hon. STEPHEN DAWSON
Minister for Environment
YOUR URGENT ATTENTION- ACT NOW!
TIPS ABOUT A TIP (but who will be the clients?)
No application has been made by Avon Waste and the Shire of York was apparently not aware of any official approach regarding any formal intention to develop the SUEZ landfill site at Allawuna.
The Shire of York should have been off the hook.
Yet there is still a window of opportunity for companies committed to environmentally destructive garbology on pristine farmland to destroy York’s potentially vibrant future.
The window has apparently been opened, from left field, by a Queensland company, Alkina International, which specializes in manufacturing garbage containers and public ashtrays.
SUEZ received approval from the former government, its relevant Ministers and departments for non-approved land use, not from the current government.
This government and the Ministers concerned do have the power to overturn any previous agreement including any ‘Sunset Clause’ with one stroke of a pen. This was done to the ROE8 project.
These relevant Ministers can also demand that stringent environmental and disaster management measures must be revisited by any new applicant prior to any approval being given for a landfill on Allawuna.
Alkina International is registered as a single location business, with a turnover of $2million and just 11 employees.
It appears to have no experience in either landfill creation and management or waste transport and delivery.
It operates as a garbage bin manufacturer under Queensland laws and may have no knowledge of WA law regarding the safe transport and storage of domestic, industrial and hazardous waste under local environmental legislation, including the Environmental Protection Act 1986.
The Shire of York can tell the Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Transport that, because of this lack of expertise and its rebuilding program of its own road assets, it will not allow any company like Alkina International to use its local roads to transport waste.
The Shire of York can also request from the government a list of clients that support Alkina International’s landfill application to prove that it is documented evidence that it has the required business credentials to support its application.
If a client happens to be Avon Waste then the Shire of York should advise this company that it will review its contractual relationship for waste removal within the Shire and suggest it will place the contract out for tender after seeking legal advice.
Not to do so will allow the community to assume that the Shire of York may have colluded with Avon Waste behind its back. There is a strong past personal connection between its owners and Councillors and Councils which will not be overlooked.
The former Minister for Water, Mia Davies did not support the fact that Allawuna Farm is in a water-catchment area.
With this year’s increased winter rainfall the Shire of York can request that the current Minister for Water re-assess the importance of this catchment area as being an essential part of WA’s limited water resources.
The fact that Allawuna is in a high impact earthquake zone and the area is subject to a meteorological temperature inversion that can trap airborne contaminants to the surrounding farms’ environmental detriment-also cannot be disputed.
The Shire of York should advise the Minister for Health and related departments that it does not have the emergency services, emergency healthcare facilities and fire protection services to handle a major environmental disaster caused by any serious failure of a large landfill facility.
The real voice of York is the Shire of York.
The time is now for the Shire to show how good a communicator it is in acting on behalf of the community over extremely serious concerns.
This is what you are elected and employed to do and you have been given reasonable reasons to act.
If you stand by the community, the community will stand by you.
NO EXCUSES! NO PONTIOUS PILATE ACT.
David Taylor.
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