New South Wales government and opposition MPs have been accused of “covering up” the health threats posed by heavy metals mining, after findings in a parliamentary inquiry report were slammed by the inquiry’s chair.
Key points:
- Government and opposition MPs are accused of censoring a heavy metals inquiry’s report
- Greens MPs say several proposed recommendations were voted against by Labor and Liberal members
- The inquiry concludes that the NSW mining regulatory framework is ‘fundamentally sound’
The report was released as part of a state parliamentary inquiry into the current and potential impacts posed by lead, gold, silver and zinc mines in NSW.
The Upper House committee, made up of Labor, Liberal, Nationals and Greens MLCs, has made eight findings, which conclude that metalliferous mining “is of particular importance for the state’s transition to net zero and for Australia’s sovereign capability”.
It also found the drinking water near Cadia gold mine at Orange in the state’s central west meets national guidelines, and that the regulatory framework governing mines is “fundamentally sound”.
Committee meeting minutes reveal a recommendation that initially described the assessment and approvals process as being “not fit for purpose” was changed to say it was “fundamentally sound”.
Committee chair and Greens MLC Dr Amanda Cohn said she was “devastated” by the findings.
“I’ve had to take the extraordinary step of dissenting from this report as the chair,” Dr Cohn said.
“The report found that the regulatory framework for metals mining is fundamentally sound and we had months of evidence, over 200 submissions, that that’s clearly not the case.”
Committee meeting minutes reveal Labor and Liberal members voted to remove certain details and proposed recommendations, in particular those that referred to witnesses’ serious health concerns and the effectiveness of the regulatory framework.
Dr Cohn spoke to the witnesses who gave evidence about their fears for their health and their farms.
“This is not the report that you deserve.
“It’s quite extraordinary to me that an entire chapter about the rehabilitation of mine sites was excluded.
“It really stinks of a commitment to business-as-usual in that sector.”
Fellow Greens MLC and committee member Cate Faehrmann described the findings as a “political hatchet job”.
“The Greens resoundingly reject the findings and recommendations in this report after it was sabotaged by government members intent on covering up the truth,” Ms Faehrmann said.
“This final report severely downplays the contamination issues experienced by members of the community who reside near Cadia gold mine.”
‘Worst case scenario’
The inquiry was triggered by the experiences of people living near Cadia gold mine at Orange and residents at Lue near Mudgee who are opposed to a recently approved lead, zinc and silver mine.
At Orange, a group of residents discovered heavy metals in their blood and rainwater tanks and feared it was caused by dust blowing off the Cadia site.
The mine’s owner has repeatedly denied it was the source of the heavy metals and gave evidence at the first public hearing.
Cadia’s owner, Newmont, has released a statement saying it would wait for the NSW government’s response to the committee’s report.
For those at Lue, they do not trust assurances from Bowdens Silver, which owns the mining project, and state government authorities that dust carrying lead will not cause any adverse health or environmental impacts.
Susannah White, whose family farms near Lue, described the report’s findings as the “worst case scenario”.
“Anything that gets close to representing the reality has been severely watered down,” she said.
“It’s pretty clear members of the committee have ganged up and highjacked the end result that we’ve been left with.”
Rebecca Price gave evidence about the McPhillamys Gold Project, which will be built near her farm at Blayney.
“They have skewed the whole inquiry towards a positive outlook for the proponents and the mining companies that are involved, and it’s so disappointing when you consider that these are the politicians that have the power to change our [mining] framework,” she said.
The inquiry made 11 recommendations, which include calls for greater resources for the NSW Environment Protection Authority and NSW Resources Regulator, and consideration of an increase in the $15,000 penalty for certain environmental breaches.
The NSW government is due to respond to the report in about three months.
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