Page 189 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 10 February 2016
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We are not only calling on the government to identify the cause of the smell but we are proposing some solutions of what they may do; an action plan of what they may do. That includes conducting field-based, ambient odour intensity assessment surveys—one during February and one in March—to observe the downwind odour intensity and frequency in and around discrete receptor locations in Tuggeranong, then process the data from those surveys, comparing the frequency and intensity of odours observed at each survey location in Tuggeranong, and then communicate openly with Tuggeranong residents, not pretend there is no smell, not say, “You live next to a tip; you have got to expect that,” because that is not right. It is not right to expect people to put up with a smell like that from a tip which is kilometres away. Again, if it is not the tip, where is it coming from and what are we going to do to stop it?
The government needs to take appropriate action to ensure the smell does not reoccur. We have asked it to report back to the Assembly in March 2016 on the progress. I urge the government to find the cause of the smell and stop the stench continuing to impact on Tuggeranong residents. I urge all members here—not only those in the Brindabella electorate but especially those members—to support this motion today.
MS FITZHARRIS (Molonglo—Minister for Higher Education, Training and Research, Minister for Transport and Municipal Services and Assistant Minister for Health) (5.01): I thank Ms Lawder for her motion today, and I would like to reassure Ms Lawder that I have been taking this matter seriously. Last Friday I visited Mugga Lane, Fadden and Macarthur to receive a briefing from the officials from the EPA and from TAMS about the situation and to see for myself the efforts they are undertaking to resolve this. I am happy to extend to other members of the Legislative Assembly a similar briefing and the opportunity to join me at the Mugga Lane facility to get a better understanding of this issue. It is an important issue, and I would like to thank Mr Gentlemen and Ms Burch for also bringing this matter to my attention. They are both terrific advocates for the Tuggeranong community. Of course, I would like to thank the affected residents who have raised the matter, and I hope we can get to the bottom of it.
Madam Deputy Speaker, as it has turned out, this matter is a complex one, and I will be moving an amendment today to reflect some of this complexity. While there is no doubt there is an odour which is affecting some residents of Macarthur and Fadden, it has not been easy to find its source, despite extensive efforts of both ACT NOWaste and Access Canberra. For example, in many cases the odour complaints have occurred when the prevailing wind was coming from a direction other than the landfill. If the landfill was the source of the odour, it could be expected there would be high levels of complaints from businesses in Hume during prevailing westerly winds; however, this has not been the case.
To continue the investigation into the source of the odour, the Environment Protection Authority and ACT NOWaste are engaging with affected residents. Local residents have been asked to maintain diaries so that the EPA can better determine the cause of the odour and when it is most prevalent. Further, the Mugga Lane landfill and other potential sources of the odour at the Mugga Lane Resource Management Centre have
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