Victoria's desal plant in trouble over toxic soil

From: AAP June 16, 2010


VICTORIA'S environmental watchdog has rebuked the company building the state's $3.5 billion desalination plant for not safely managing potentially toxic soils.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has slapped the AquaSure consortium with a pollution abatement notice after a site inspection revealed high volumes of acid sulphate soils had been disturbed.

The soils are naturally occurring but can react with oxygen when disturbed, forming sulfuric acid which can kill plants and animals, contaminate drinking water and corrode concrete and steel.

Opponents of the project in Wonthaggi, on Victoria's southeast coast, say their fears have been realised, despite earlier assurances by the government that safeguards would be in place to manage sensitive soils.

EPA chief executive officer John Merritt said a review of management systems, and an inspection by EPA officers and an independent expert, revealed several ongoing issues at the site that had the potential to impact the environment.

"The recent inspection revealed high volumes of acid sulphate soils which had been disturbed, several on site water bodies with high acidity and potential for substantial runoff from the site, which could change the condition of the receiving waters," he said in a statement.

"Since putting AquaSure on notice, the company has taken positive steps to remedy the issues on site. We will continue to ensure these issues are managed appropriately and any environmental risks are fully mitigated."

AquaSure chief executive Chris Herbert said the company was confident the environment would not be polluted.

"It is important to note that this notice is about proactive, preventative action and that there hasn't been any pollution incident on site."

But opponents of the project say the potential for damage is real and they are being fed misinformation.

At a community liaison meeting on May 27, the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) reported that there had been no compliance breaches.

According to the minutes, AquaSure was in ongoing discussions with the EPA regarding the management of acid sulphate soils, but "the EPA was happy with the physical work to manage this issue."

Watershed Victoria president Stephen Cannon said the statement contradicted the watchdog's actions.

"It's (acid sulphate soils) obviously a concern, if it was merely precautionary I would question why they would issue an abatement notice," he said.

"Acid sulphate soils once disturbed become very corrosive to the environment and so the management of works in the vicinity of them is extremely important and issues of cost come into play."

A spokesman for Water Minister Tim Holding said the government expected AquaSure would provide the EPA with the relevant paperwork to ensure they complied with the order.

When complete at the end of next year, the plant will generate up to 150 billion litres of water a year