Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-10-28 Daily Xml

Contents

INTEGRATED WASTE STRATEGY

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (14:42): Can the minister confirm that the soil to be remediated with the development to the west of the Morphett Street Bridge on the existing railway corridor will be decontaminated at this new facility, or is that going to be carted interstate for decontamination?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister Assisting the Premier in Public Sector Management) (14:42): I think there was a photograph in the paper this morning of some of the land at the site on the old railway station yards where the new health research facility is, and that has been treated effectively. With this new method, in relation to the new hospital site I am not sure what the contractual obligations are. I guess there has not been a contract finalised yet, but the important thing is that with a facility like this we now have the capacity to do it here, and that would mean doing it more cheaply so that one would hope that the market would provide that it would be done locally.

As I said, I am not responsible for that particular contract and the conditions. The important thing is that we now have the capacity to do it here and at a number of other important sites. One could name, not so much the Clipsal site but the adjoining Origin Energy site, which we know is contaminated, and there are a number of other sites. I think it is important to note that with these new techniques we can recover that soil so that it can be used effectively in other construction activities, road fill and the like. Not only does it end the contamination problem but it actually provides a required resource.