❓ A WA parliamentary question regarding the Department of Environment's pollution response capabilities is answered with details of new equipment, training, and a recent incident response, highlighting the unit's effectiveness.
AnsweredQoN 378Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I understand that the Department of Environment responds to a number of potentially life-threatening pollution incidents each year. How can the people of Western Australia be sure that the response is appropriate and be satisfied that we have the best equipment to deal with such incidents? Dr J.M. EDWARDS
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of this question. Recently I was able to inspect the Department of Environment’s pollution response unit, in particular the new equipment it has received over the past financial year. I am delighted with the way that unit has come together and the training it has undertaken, including with the United States Environmental Protection Authority, and the way it is now able to use state-of-the-art equipment. In fact, just last night it was called out to a truck roll over in which 20 000 litres of ammonium nitrate spilled onto a road and was likely to go into a nearby creek. The pollution response unit was called and responded very quickly. It ascertained through its new gas detection equipment that it was safe to be in the area. It oversaw the start of the clean-up and dug a trench alongside the road to collect the material and make sure it would be disposed of safely. It issued an environmental field notice that oversees the clean-up, and I gather that will happen over the next two days. As part of that, samples of the soil in the nearby creek will be taken to make sure the chemical did not get into it. Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. Recently I was able to inspect the Department of Environment’s pollution response unit, in particular the new equipment it has received over the past financial year. I am delighted with the way that unit has come together and the training it has undertaken, including with the United States Environmental Protection Authority, and the way it is now able to use state-of-the-art equipment. In fact, just last night it was called out to a truck roll over in which 20 000 litres of ammonium nitrate spilled onto a road and was likely to go into a nearby creek. The pollution response unit was called and responded very quickly. It ascertained through its new gas detection equipment that it was safe to be in the area. It oversaw the start of the clean-up and dug a trench alongside the road to collect the material and make sure it would be disposed of safely. It issued an environmental field notice that oversees the clean-up, and I gather that will happen over the next two days. As part of that, samples of the soil in the nearby creek will be taken to make sure the chemical did not get into it. Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. Recently I was able to inspect the Department of Environment’s pollution response unit, in particular the new equipment it has received over the past financial year. I am delighted with the way that unit has come together and the training it has undertaken, including with the United States Environmental Protection Authority, and the way it is now able to use state-of-the-art equipment. In fact, just last night it was called out to a truck roll over in which 20 000 litres of ammonium nitrate spilled onto a road and was likely to go into a nearby creek. The pollution response unit was called and responded very quickly. It ascertained through its new gas detection equipment that it was safe to be in the area. It oversaw the start of the clean-up and dug a trench alongside the road to collect the material and make sure it would be disposed of safely. It issued an environmental field notice that oversees the clean-up, and I gather that will happen over the next two days. As part of that, samples of the soil in the nearby creek will be taken to make sure the chemical did not get into it. Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. Recently I was able to inspect the Department of Environment’s pollution response unit, in particular the new equipment it has received over the past financial year. I am delighted with the way that unit has come together and the training it has undertaken, including with the United States Environmental Protection Authority, and the way it is now able to use state-of-the-art equipment. In fact, just last night it was called out to a truck roll over in which 20 000 litres of ammonium nitrate spilled onto a road and was likely to go into a nearby creek. The pollution response unit was called and responded very quickly. It ascertained through its new gas detection equipment that it was safe to be in the area. It oversaw the start of the clean-up and dug a trench alongside the road to collect the material and make sure it would be disposed of safely. It issued an environmental field notice that oversees the clean-up, and I gather that will happen over the next two days. As part of that, samples of the soil in the nearby creek will be taken to make sure the chemical did not get into it. Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. Recently I was able to inspect the Department of Environment’s pollution response unit, in particular the new equipment it has received over the past financial year. I am delighted with the way that unit has come together and the training it has undertaken, including with the United States Environmental Protection Authority, and the way it is now able to use state-of-the-art equipment. In fact, just last night it was called out to a truck roll over in which 20 000 litres of ammonium nitrate spilled onto a road and was likely to go into a nearby creek. The pollution response unit was called and responded very quickly. It ascertained through its new gas detection equipment that it was safe to be in the area. It oversaw the start of the clean-up and dug a trench alongside the road to collect the material and make sure it would be disposed of safely. It issued an environmental field notice that oversees the clean-up, and I gather that will happen over the next two days. As part of that, samples of the soil in the nearby creek will be taken to make sure the chemical did not get into it. Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Among some of its new equipment it has a new rapid-deployment kit that enables officers to detect toxic gases and have the equipment placed where they think the gases are while gathering information from a remote location. This is the first time this equipment has been used in Australia. It is being used in places such as Chicago and New York for purposes including terrorism related activities. We are right up there, with good, top, state-of-the-art equipment. In addition, the unit recently acquired a portable heavy metal detector that can instantly see whether heavy metals are present. In the past, samples had to be taken back to the laboratory and officers worked with a bit of a guesstimation rather than good knowledge. With the portable heavy metal detector, they will know whether they are dealing with heavy metals. The unit has also invested in thermal imaging equipment, so they are much more effective at night; that is, officers are more able to see what is going on when incidents and accidents occur at night. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
The SPEAKER: Order, members! Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
Dr J.M. EDWARDS: There are nine new officers in the unit. Not only has the Government given the unit new money - $250 000 has been spent recently - but also it has provided it with about nine new people. Also, people from the United States Environmental Protection Agency came over here to train these officers. I was delighted when the USEPA told me that our training was right up there with US training, and that they were able to learn from us.
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