Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The New South Wales Planning Assessment Commission has no alternative other than to reject the proposal for the development of a concrete recycling plant at Moorebank. The reason is as follows. The New South Wales Department of Environment and Conservation published a document titled Approved methods for the modelling and assessment of air pollutants in New South Wales. This lists the statutory methods for modelling and assessing emissions of air pollutants from all stationary sources in New South Wales. At paragraph 3.1, it clearly states that the proponent must 'identify all sources of air pollution and potential emissions'—all sources.

It is well documented that what is known as fine particulate matter PM2.5 is emitted from concrete recycling. The World Health Organization classifies PM2.5 as a source of a cancer-causing agent. The World Health Organization also sets threshold guidelines for PM2.5, yet the proponent's air quality monitoring reports simply fail to do any modelling of this dangerous air pollutant which causes cancer. This leaves the Planning Assessment Commission with absolutely no alternative than to reject this proposal. The reason why, I suggest, the proponent has not modelled it is that, already in Western Sydney, we have levels of air pollution for PM2.5 approaching those standards set by the World Health Organization, and this proposal risks pushing it above those standards. It must be rejected by the Planning Assessment Commission. (Time expired)