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News in brief, September 7, 2007

NSW allows application of bauxite processing waste to farms; Garrett takes Downer to task for climate targets comment; NSW approves new coal mine; WA waste oil crisis; and SA and Federal governments to extend water recycling scheme

NSW allows application of bauxite processing waste to farms

The NSW government today exempted 'red mud' residues, a waste by-product of bauxite processing, from a regulation that bans the application of waste products to land. The clause 51 exemption for treated red mud residues was made under the Protection of the Environment Operations (Waste) Regulation 2005.

Other industrial wastes so far exempted because they cause no harm and might be beneficial are: bagasse and cane trash ash; uncontaminated wood and paper ash; fly ash and bottom ash from burning NSW and Queensland coal; lime and gypsum residues from drinking water treatment; lime and gypsum residues from plasterboard; and foundry sand.

Garrett takes Downer to task

Shadow Environment Minister Peter Garrett today said an April speech by Foreign Minister Alexander Downer showed the minister had "misled" Australia about his views on 'aspirational', non-binding climate change targets. Downer dismissed aspirational targets as "code for political stunts", in his April 19 Monash APEC lecture. "An aspirational target is not a real target at all," he said.

In an APEC press conference yesterday the minister said his comments had been directed at "the stunt courtesy of the Australian Labor Party, which is the claim it makes that it would reduce Australia's … CO2 emissions by 50% or 60% by 2050".

NSW approves new coal mine

NSW Planning Minister Frank Sartor yesterday announced approval for the Moolarben coal mine at Ulan, near Mudgee. The minister said the Director-General of the Department of Planning had advised the mine should not be rejected over greenhouse gas emissions.

The director-general's assessment report to the minister said about 25 million tonnes of CO2e would be generated from mining, transporting and burning coal from the mine. But it said irrespective of what happens to the Moolarben project, global demand for coal would remain. "Consequently, there can be no substantive argument on ESD grounds relating to greenhouse gas emissions to prevent coal production at Moolarben," it said.

Greenpeace energy campaigner Ben Pearson today described the decision as "a climate disaster".

WA turns to Singapore to deal with waste oil crisis

Concerns about WA’s stockpile of used oil are being temporarily eased by exporting it to Singapore and Christmas Island and more shipments will follow, environment minister David Templeman yesterday told state parliament.

"Earlier this year, the efforts of the [environment] department resulted in several shipments of used oil being sent to Singapore and Christmas Island, and approval has recently been granted for the further export of some eight million litres of used oil to Singapore in the near future and more shipments will follow."

The minister said the 2006 closure of the Loongana Lime plant in Kalgoorlie, which had used large quantities of used oil as fuel, was partly to blame. Nor did the state have a recycling facility that could process the used oil into higher-value lubricating oil, he said. WA’s used oil woes are being investigated by a working party established at the June 2007 meeting of the Environment Protection and Heritage Council.

SA and federal governments to extend water recycling scheme

The SA Government will provide $2.5 million and the Federal Government $2.035 million to extend the Virginia Pipeline scheme that provides treated wastewater to vegetable growers, SA’s water security minister Karlene Maywald said yesterday.

The Virginia scheme already provides about 15,000 megalitres a year of treated wastewater from the Bolivar sewage treatment plant to irrigators. The funding will boost this by 3,000 megalitres a year and extend the area it covers. Once completed next September 35% of the wastewater from Bolivar, Adelaide's largest treatment plant, will be being reused.

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