❓ A WA parliamentary question regarding potential contamination at Norseman Gold Operations. The Minister provides limited information due to confidentiality and ongoing investigation, tabling documents for further detail.
AnsweredQoN 2718Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the Norseman Gold Operations, including but not limited to the Okay Mine, Harlequin Mine, Bullen Mine, North Royal Mine, Norseman Gold Mill, the old tailings dam in the vicinity of the accommodation provided onsite, and all tenements/land affected/controlled by Norseman Gold in the area, and ask -
(1) Can the Minister state on what specific dates Norseman Gold made reports including locations under the
Contaminated Sites Act 2003
for the above referred to operations?
(2) If no to (1), why not?
(3) Can the minister indicate the depth in metres below ground level that has been contaminated with soils, groundwater around the above referred to operations?
(4) If no to (3), why not?
(5) Can the Minister indicate for each of the sites referred to in (1) and (3), why the Department of Environment and Conservation considers each to be to a contaminated site?
(6) If no to (5), why not?
(7) Can the Minister identify with a scaled map all of the specific areas for the above referred to operations, showing tenement areas with tenement numbers of all the areas suspected known or contaminated areas reported under the
Contaminated sites Act 2003
?
(8) If no to (7), why not?
(1) Can the Minister state on what specific dates Norseman Gold made reports including locations under the
Contaminated Sites Act 2003
for the above referred to operations?
(2) If no to (1), why not?
(3) Can the minister indicate the depth in metres below ground level that has been contaminated with soils, groundwater around the above referred to operations?
(4) If no to (3), why not?
(5) Can the Minister indicate for each of the sites referred to in (1) and (3), why the Department of Environment and Conservation considers each to be to a contaminated site?
(6) If no to (5), why not?
(7) Can the Minister identify with a scaled map all of the specific areas for the above referred to operations, showing tenement areas with tenement numbers of all the areas suspected known or contaminated areas reported under the
Contaminated sites Act 2003
?
(8) If no to (7), why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
12 October 2010
Responded by
Minister for Environment
Response time
35 days
(1)-(2) No. Under section 96(1) of the
Contaminated Sites Act 2003
, the identity of any person who reports a known or suspected contaminated site is confidential.
(3-6) The Norseman Gold operations, including Bullen Decline, Butterfly tailings storage facility, Harlequin Mine, North Royal Mine, Okay Decline, Phoenix Mill, Venture Mine and Viking Sands tailings storage facility, have been classified
possibly contaminated - investigation required
under the Contaminated Sites Act. Desktop studies and monitoring data indicate that acidity, alkalinity, cyanide, hydrocarbons, metals, nutrients and/or salinity may be present in soil and/or groundwater in parts of the sites. Further investigation is required to determine the lateral and vertical extent of impact, followed by a risk assessment to determine whether the levels of substances present in soil or groundwater represent a risk of harm to human health, the environment or any environmental value.
(7)-(8) I table the attached papers and seek leave to have them incorporated into Hansard.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
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Contaminated Sites Act 2003
, the identity of any person who reports a known or suspected contaminated site is confidential.
(3-6) The Norseman Gold operations, including Bullen Decline, Butterfly tailings storage facility, Harlequin Mine, North Royal Mine, Okay Decline, Phoenix Mill, Venture Mine and Viking Sands tailings storage facility, have been classified
possibly contaminated - investigation required
under the Contaminated Sites Act. Desktop studies and monitoring data indicate that acidity, alkalinity, cyanide, hydrocarbons, metals, nutrients and/or salinity may be present in soil and/or groundwater in parts of the sites. Further investigation is required to determine the lateral and vertical extent of impact, followed by a risk assessment to determine whether the levels of substances present in soil or groundwater represent a risk of harm to human health, the environment or any environmental value.
(7)-(8) I table the attached papers and seek leave to have them incorporated into Hansard.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
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