Page 1305 - Week 04 - Thursday, 7 April 2016
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As we come to National Youth Week, which starts on 8 April 2016, the ACT government is pleased to provide this illustration of how we are making a real difference in the lives of young people in the ACT. Madam Speaker, I commend this report and its summary to the chamber.
Tuggeranong—ambient odours
Statement by minister
MS FITZHARRIS (Molonglo—Minister for Higher Education, Training and Research, Minister for Transport and Municipal Services and Assistant Minister for Health) (3.52), by leave: I rise to report to the Assembly on the progress of the investigation into odour issues in Tuggeranong. I take this opportunity to again express my personal concerns with the complaints of bad odour and to outline the extensive work being done to identify the source of this odour.
The ACT government is working across a number of agencies to investigate the cause. The ACT Environment Protection Authority have taken primary responsibility for investigating the complaints as the appropriate regulatory authority. They have expended considerable time and effort in searching for the source of the odour and have engaged with many affected residents. This has included investigating works currently underway at the Mugga Lane Resource Management Centre.
EPA inspectors have frequently visited affected residential areas searching for evidence of any odours and have spoken extensively to local residents and workers during the visits. In addition, numerous phone calls to operators and concerned residents have been made by inspectors over a considerable period of time in order to gather data on the odour and to try and track its source.
I confirm that EPA inspectors visited the Mugga Lane Resource Centre on five occasions in December 2015, three occasions in January 2016, six occasions in February, three occasions in March and again earlier this week. In addition, EPA officers have also inspected drains and any open bodies of water such as ponds and have taken note of prevailing weather conditions including recent rainfall, wind speed and direction, humidity and temperature with a view to determining any potential patterns.
Icon Water have also investigated the possibility of sewage pipes being a source of the odour. Icon have advised that they have found no evidence of any odour from this source such as breaks in pipes. They have also confirmed that there are no network vents in the area that would contribute to any odour issues.
Based on the data so far collected, the EPA has undertaken some preliminary mapping work to look at the location of the complaints from residential areas where this information has been provided, with the majority being in the adjoining residential suburbs of Macarthur and Fadden. The odour has been reported as predominantly present in either the early morning or evening.
The EPA has commenced analysis of matched data received to date, along with detailed meteorological conditions, where a complaint has accurately identified the
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