INCINERATOR INQUIRY

The NSW Coalition have been successful in securing a Parliamentary Inquiry into waste-to-energy incinerators following major concerns about Sydney’s excess waste being dumped in the regions.

With nearly a million tonnes of waste heading to the regions, and proposals to incinerate the rubbish in places like Tarago and Parkes, Nationals MP Nichole Overall MLC and Liberal MP The Hon Natasha Maclaren-Jones MLC will be on the committee to ask the hard questions of NSW Labor because so far community voices have been ignored.

The inquiry will explore:

▪️ Toxic emissions & health risks

▪️ Impact on agriculture & local water supplies

▪️ Emissions monitoring practices

▪️ Waste dumping over decades

▪️ Whether this is truly ‘state of the art’ tech – or just Sydney’s problem dumped on us

Here are the full Terms of Reference:

i. The performance of the technologies proposed for the Tarago and Parkes Energy Recovery Facilities as compared to leading thermal technologies employed in “state of the art” facilities internationally;

ii. The spread of the emissions predicted and the quality of emissions to be generated;

iii. Health impacts from currently operating older technology waste incinerators as compared to the proposed newer technology;

iv. Impacts on human health including on regional town drinking water, rainwater harvesting and soil contamination;

v. The impact on agriculture including sheep, cattle and crop production locally and across the wider region;

vi. Alterations to the Parkes Special Activation Precinct specifically in relation to the proposed Energy Recovery Facility in that region;

vii. Impacts of waste-dumping over a number of decades in the Tarago region;

viii. The methodology of emission monitoring employed by leading large-scale waste-to-energy facilities in Australia and across the world;

ix. And any related matters.

This is a great win for our community, and I look forward to keeping you informed when submissions will be open.

I urge everyone to have their say and make sure our voices are heard.