Push to cut Rosebery mine's metal dust emission levels

THE Government has come under pressure to reduce the amount of heavy metal it allows the Rosebery zinc, lead and silver mine to emit as dust.

Rosebery zinc mine

THE Tasmanian Government has come under pressure to reduce the amount of heavy metal it allows the Rosebery zinc, lead and silver mine to emit as dust.

Mark Taylor, an environmental science professor at Sydney's Macquarie University and an authority on lead pollution, said the mine was operating under outdated standards, which set the emission's bar at 1.5ug/cubic metre.

Professor Taylor said the Government should compel mine operator MMG to comply with the national environmental protection measure level of 0.5ug/cubic metre, which would bring it into line with the Mt Isa and Port Pirie mine and smelting operations interstate.

He said emissions testing results should be made public.

Prof Taylor said he was unable to fault a 2009 study conducted by State Government agencies and MMG that found no unacceptable heavy metal hazards in or around Rosebery, which could be linked to dust blown from the adjacent mine site.

But he said that was no excuse for the government to ignore targets announced in 1998 by the National Environment Protection Council, to become binding by 2008.

MMG spokesman Edward Woodruff said allegations by residents that the presence of heavy metals on their properties had made them ill had triggered one of Australia's largest community environmental testing efforts in 2009.

Mr Woodruff said all children's blood lead level tests were found to be well inside safe limits.

"Blood lead levels in Rosebery children were within the same range as those found in other mining areas of Australia," he said.

"Results from 2000 soil dust and water samples collected and analysed showed only one suburb in Rosebery had an average lead level marginally above the health investigation level for residential land.

"While there are some elevated soil lead levels in this and other suburbs, they are manageable with good health and hygiene practices." Public Health director Roscoe Taylor said the reduction in local children's average blood lead levels by more than half from 1998 to 2010 was evidence that any mineralisation of local soils had not caused harm.

Dr Taylor said West Coast residents' comparatively poor health could be largely put down to diet and lifestyle.

Mr Woodruff said it was also unfair to compare the Rosebery mine site with the Mt Isa and Port Pirie smelter sites which released particles via smoke stacks.

"Smelter sites are much more likely to have evidence of elevated metals in the surrounding environment than mining only sites," he said.

Read Professor Mark Taylor's response to this article