Tuesday 13 September 2011
VOL 9. No 37
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Gary Ablett
was back in Torquay on Sunday with a message for nippers that training hard and setting goals were the key factors in achieving success. See story, page three.
IN THE AIR BY LUKE GRIFFITHS
THE STATE Government’s plan to grant Alcoa a 50-year extension of its current lease has emotions running high. Anglesea Community Hall was the site of a public forum on Sunday, with more than 250 in attendance. Anglesea Air Action (AAA) organised the event and called for a Government-funded, independent air quality assessment and urged Alcoa to embrace renewable energy at the Point Henry site. Alcoa’s Anglesea coal mine and power station have been operating for almost 50 years and it is feared by some within the community that pollution stemming from a further 50 years of operation will cause irreparable environmental and health damage. “AAA has written a letter to the Health Minister
Su rf Forecast
advising him of our group’s concerns and has requested an independent air quality assessment. We will continue to lobby the Department of Health on behalf of the community,” Dr Jacinta Morahan said at the event. In response, Alcoa said that the local community should not be concerned about the proposed lease renewal and that all of its operations were safe and risk-free. “Alcoa’s coal mine and power station are safe for both employees and the neighbouring community,” Alcoa’s General Manager of Manufacturing (Victoria) John Osborne said. “This is a lease renewal – Alcoa is not changing how it operates. The air emissions from the power station satisfy national and Victorian EPA limits that are protective of health.
long time and generates a lot of money into the town and provides a lot of work,” Anglesea Football Club president David Cooke said. A key focus of Sunday’s forum was to lobby Alcoa to embrace modern methods of energy production. “We foresee a significant opportunity for Alcoa to show leadership in the transition to renewable energy in the region. “There’s immense community support behind the proposal that Alcoa could use this upcoming lease renewal to announce serious steps to transition to renewable energy for its Point Henry aluminium smelting facility in the near future,” AAA spokesman Mike Lawrence said. Since 2003, Alcoa has reduced global direct greenhouse gas emissions to 44 per cent below the levels that were recorded in 1990.
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“Claims of a dramatic expansion of the mine are untrue. Renewing the lease does not mean that Alcoa intends to increase the rate of mining, or rapidly increase the area of land disturbed within the lease.” A major concern of AAA is that there hasn’t been an independent analysis of the air quality, with the State Government instead relying on data supplied by Alcoa. “While it seems a health study could take some time, an air quality assessment could be done immediately,” Andrew Dingle said. Some long-term Anglesea residents have highlighted the contribution Alcoa makes to the wider community, which includes a $10,000 annual sponsorship of the football club. “I think it’s a minority group that’s making a lot of noise. It’s (Alcoa) been a part of Anglesea for a
Public forum calls for an independent air quality assessment at the Point Henry facility
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