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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-04-10 Daily Xml
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Ministerial Statement

BLOOD LEAD LEVELS

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health, Minister for the Southern Suburbs, Minister Assisting the Premier in the Arts) (15:27): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Today I am pleased to release the 2007 Port Pirie blood lead level annual results. These results demonstrate that there has been in excess of a 10 per cent reduction in the number of children with a blood lead level greater than or equal to 10 micrograms per decilitre when compared with the 2006 calendar year result. This comes on top of a significant reduction between 2005 and 2006. In short, there is a downward trend in the number of children aged under five with blood lead levels greater than or equal to 10 micrograms per decilitre. In fact, the number of children aged under five with lead levels over 10 micrograms per decilitre is now at its lowest since we started recording this data in the early 1980s.

This is good news for the people of Port Pirie and the future of Nyrstar (formerly Zinifex), the lead smelter. The reduction in blood lead levels can be attributed, largely, to the tenby10 program, which is a joint initiative between Nyrstar, the operator of the Port Pirie lead smelter, Port Pirie Regional Council and the state government. The tenby10 project has set a goal to ensure that at least 95 per cent of children aged under five have a blood lead level of less than or equal to 10 micrograms per decilitre by the end of 2010. This will be a very difficult target to meet but we are currently on track. If the current rate of reduction between 2006 and 2007 is maintained through to 2010, the target will be met.

The tenby10 program has involved a highly successful education program to inform Port Pirie residents about how to minimise their contact with lead, especially how to shield their children from possible exposure.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Unley and the Deputy Premier will come to order.

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The Attorney-General will also come to order.

The Hon. J.D. HILL: Thank you, Mr Speaker. In addition, capital works undertaken to enclose the new blast furnace and install new equipment at the slag fumer were completed in August 2007. This will significantly reduce emissions from the smelter, and it is anticipated that it will lead to a further reduction in the blood lead levels of children in Port Pirie.

These projects are part of Nyrstar's commitment of $56 million aimed at reducing emissions. The future of Port Pirie and the Nyrstar lead smelter are intrinsically linked. The smelter and the community must be able to cohabit. The figures released today demonstrate that by working collaboratively with local government and Nyrstar we are heading in the right direction to solve a problem that has plagued the people of Port Pirie for decades.

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