Mr. Edwards questions the government about a conveyor belt proposal as an alternative to the Southern Transport Corridor in Geraldton. Ms. MacTiernan responds that the proposal is unlikely to be economically feasible and hasn't delayed corridor planning.

AnsweredQoN 557Legislative Assembly
Asked
13 November 2001
Member
Portfolio
Planning and Infrastructure

QuestionView source ↗

SOUTHERN TRANSPORT CORRIDOR, GERALDTON, CONVEYOR BELT SYSTEM
I refer to the proposed southern transport corridor in Geraldton. (1) Is the Government considering a proposal to construct a conveyor belt system to link the Narngulu industrial estate with the port at Geraldton as an alternative means of delivery to a southern transport corridor? (2) If so, can the minister tell the House what impact the consideration of this proposal would have on the time line and financing of the southern transport corridor? Ms MacTIERNAN

AnswerView source ↗

(1)-(2) A proposal was put forward to the Government by a member of the community through the local council. The local authority asked the Government whether it thought there was any merit to the conveyor belt proposal. We undertook to find out whether there was any such conveyor system in operation. Some suggestion had been made that conveyor systems were in place in Europe; however, we have not been able to locate one, despite an extensive search. We have spoken to some industry players, particularly from the resource industry. It is clear that if a conveyor belt system were used, separate conveyor belts would be needed for each product that was transported, even for different classes of mineral sands. This suggests to the Government that it is unlikely that this proposal would be economically feasible or would provide the advantages that were initially suggested. I can assure the member for Greenough that the Government has not, in any way, set aside or delayed the work on the planning for the southern transport corridor. The two matters have gone in tandem. To date, the Government has been unable to find any comparable models.
(1) Is the Government considering a proposal to construct a conveyor belt system to link the Narngulu industrial estate with the port at Geraldton as an alternative means of delivery to a southern transport corridor? (2) If so, can the minister tell the House what impact the consideration of this proposal would have on the time line and financing of the southern transport corridor? Ms MacTIERNAN replied: (1)-(2) A proposal was put forward to the Government by a member of the community through the local council. The local authority asked the Government whether it thought there was any merit to the conveyor belt proposal. We undertook to find out whether there was any such conveyor system in operation. Some suggestion had been made that conveyor systems were in place in Europe; however, we have not been able to locate one, despite an extensive search. We have spoken to some industry players, particularly from the resource industry. It is clear that if a conveyor belt system were used, separate conveyor belts would be needed for each product that was transported, even for different classes of mineral sands. This suggests to the Government that it is unlikely that this proposal would be economically feasible or would provide the advantages that were initially suggested. I can assure the member for Greenough that the Government has not, in any way, set aside or delayed the work on the planning for the southern transport corridor. The two matters have gone in tandem. To date, the Government has been unable to find any comparable models.
(2) If so, can the minister tell the House what impact the consideration of this proposal would have on the time line and financing of the southern transport corridor? Ms MacTIERNAN replied: (1)-(2) A proposal was put forward to the Government by a member of the community through the local council. The local authority asked the Government whether it thought there was any merit to the conveyor belt proposal. We undertook to find out whether there was any such conveyor system in operation. Some suggestion had been made that conveyor systems were in place in Europe; however, we have not been able to locate one, despite an extensive search. We have spoken to some industry players, particularly from the resource industry. It is clear that if a conveyor belt system were used, separate conveyor belts would be needed for each product that was transported, even for different classes of mineral sands. This suggests to the Government that it is unlikely that this proposal would be economically feasible or would provide the advantages that were initially suggested. I can assure the member for Greenough that the Government has not, in any way, set aside or delayed the work on the planning for the southern transport corridor. The two matters have gone in tandem. To date, the Government has been unable to find any comparable models.
Ms MacTIERNAN replied: (1)-(2) A proposal was put forward to the Government by a member of the community through the local council. The local authority asked the Government whether it thought there was any merit to the conveyor belt proposal. We undertook to find out whether there was any such conveyor system in operation. Some suggestion had been made that conveyor systems were in place in Europe; however, we have not been able to locate one, despite an extensive search. We have spoken to some industry players, particularly from the resource industry. It is clear that if a conveyor belt system were used, separate conveyor belts would be needed for each product that was transported, even for different classes of mineral sands. This suggests to the Government that it is unlikely that this proposal would be economically feasible or would provide the advantages that were initially suggested. I can assure the member for Greenough that the Government has not, in any way, set aside or delayed the work on the planning for the southern transport corridor. The two matters have gone in tandem. To date, the Government has been unable to find any comparable models.
(1)-(2) A proposal was put forward to the Government by a member of the community through the local council. The local authority asked the Government whether it thought there was any merit to the conveyor belt proposal. We undertook to find out whether there was any such conveyor system in operation. Some suggestion had been made that conveyor systems were in place in Europe; however, we have not been able to locate one, despite an extensive search. We have spoken to some industry players, particularly from the resource industry. It is clear that if a conveyor belt system were used, separate conveyor belts would be needed for each product that was transported, even for different classes of mineral sands. This suggests to the Government that it is unlikely that this proposal would be economically feasible or would provide the advantages that were initially suggested. I can assure the member for Greenough that the Government has not, in any way, set aside or delayed the work on the planning for the southern transport corridor. The two matters have gone in tandem. To date, the Government has been unable to find any comparable models.

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