House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, First Session (53-1)
2014-07-03 Daily Xml

Contents

Site Contamination, Clovelly Park and Mitchell Park

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:41): My question is to the Premier. Can the government explain the information dated July 2014 that has been recently put on the EPA website which indicates that contamination testing is required in areas adjacent to Clovelly Park?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for the Public Sector) (14:41): As I understand it, the contamination arises from contamination from industrial land use into the water underneath, the underground water. What is occurring is that in some places that chemical interaction and the proximity to certain soil types has meant that the material is moving up through the soil, in some places, and therefore, in parts, into people's houses. The way in which that underground watercourse is moving and the way in which it may or may not interact in other places is something that has been studied for some period of time and continues to be of concern to the EPA.

I believe it was in the statement that they are going to continue to monitor on the outer edges to see if there has been any movement and I imagine that they will continue to be doing this for a long time to come. As we know, site contamination is a legacy that we bear of past industrial practices. We can't wish it away and we can't ignore it. What we need to do is make sure that we consistently monitor, track, and then act in a sensible way, a rational way, to the risks as identified jointly by the EPA and the public health area.