A proposed Energy from Waste (EfW) facility continues to cause divided opinions among the Lithgow community following Council's submission to explore the idea of a waste incinerator at the Old Wallerawang Power Station.
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The site now owned by Greenspot, was shortlisted by the NSW Government as a potential home for the facility, after two western Sydney sites were ruled out.
The project would utilise rail from Sydney to transport waste over the mountains to be burned at the site, west of Lithgow, that would generate electricity.
A state decision
This is wholly and solely a matter for the state government.
- Cr Stephen Lesslie
Member for Bathurst and deputy premier Paul Toole said Council's submission to explore the EfW facility will help provide a better understanding of what might be proposed.
"I want assurances that there will be no impacts on the environment or human health," he said.
"There will be clarity on how traffic concerns would be dealt with and exactly how this would generate significant job potential for the local area," he said.
Mr Toole said there would also need to be further targeted consultation with the community by the proponents before any decision is made.
Community consultation nights were held by Greenspot at Wallerawang Community and Sports Club on Thursday, March 31 and at Lithgow Showground's Civic Ballroom on Wednesday, April 6 to discuss the Energy from Waste (EfW) facility.
Greenspot CEO Brett Hawkins spoke at the sessions, while James Pearce, Project Director from Cleanaway, Australia's leading sustainable waste management company, provided industry and technical expertise to address community questions.
Members of the community and Councillors attended the events to share their thoughts and concerns.
While the previous council had a strong opposition to the waste incinerator, the new council hold a differed stance with some in favour and others who are against the idea but despite their opinions, they have no bearing on the ultimate decision.
Opposing the idea, Cr Stephen Lesslie said Council can make comments but were "no more standing than anyone else".
"This is wholly and solely a matter for the state government," he said.
'Bathurst wouldn't have it'
All we voted on was to allow Wallerawang to lobby the Government to put a footprint at Wallerawang.
- Cr Darryl Goodwin
Deputy mayor Cr Cassandra Coleman called out Mr Toole and wants to know why Lithgow is thought to be "such a good fit" for the facility.
"I can tell you now Bathurst wouldn't have it no way, if he tried to impose this on his hometown they would be screaming from the rooftops," she said.
Mr Hawkins said there is potential for an EfW project at Wallerawang but nothing had been formally proposed or applied at this point in time.
"While the West Lithgow/Wallerawang Precinct is among the four precincts named in the EfW Infrastructure Plan, the NSW Government has not yet clarified if Wallerawang Power Station is included as part of the West Lithgow/Wallerawang Precinct.
"Greenspot is currently seeking to preserve the opportunity for an EfW facility to be considered for the site," he said.
Cr Coleman, Cr Lesslie and Cr Eric Mahony have plans to put a rescission motion forward at the April Council meeting to attempt to overturn a motion, moved by Cr Darryl Goodwin and seconded by Cr Almudena Bryce, to allow Greenspot the opportunity to explore the idea for a precinct at Wallerawang.
Cr Goodwin said the legislation outlined Wallerawang and Portland but only had Portland in the footprint.
"All we voted on was to allow Wallerawang to lobby the Government to put a footprint at Wallerawang, we didn't vote for it to come here, we voted to support Wallerawang to try and get the footprint at Wallerawang," he said.
Cr Coleman said her issue lies with the fact that targeted community consultation should've occurred before Council supported the idea for the inclusion of the site and surrounds of the former Wallerawang Power Station.
"Greenspot should've done targeted community consultation prior to them coming to Council, and the other issue I have is that this motion undoes everything the previous Council did," she said.
'A lack of consultation'
Water would not leave the facility except in the form of steam released from the stack.
- Greenspot CEO Brett Hawkins
Cr Mahony said he was also not pleased with the lack of community consultation.
"I particularly have problems with the inclusion of the Wallerawang site without any community consultation or conversation about it because it brings in a substantial area of the residential landscape of Wallerawang," he said.
He said students of Wallerawang Public would spend their childhood within range of 'a plume of emissions' from the waste incinerator.
"It's also sitting at the head of the Cox's River which is Sydney's metropolitan water supply and also in range of our two significant tourism spots at Lake Wallace and the Emirates in Wolgan Valley," he said.
Cr Mahony said at least nine out of 10 people he spoke to were anxious, angry and blindsided about the project.
Mr Hawkins said there had been key topics of interest to community members such as emissions, water and transport.
He said an Environmental Impact Study (EIS), was a required part of a formal proposal process and would include air quality modeling to project the exact emissions and levels.
"Water would likely come from Coxs River, Fish River or treated mining water. This would be determined during an EIS phase," Mr Hawkins said.
"Water would not leave the facility except in the form of steam released from the stack. Therefore, there is no concern about pollution of nearby water sources," he said.
He said 80 to 90 per cent of the transport needs would be met by sealed containers delivered directly into the site via rail.
"Trucks would only be used where train is impractical such as delivering red bin waste from Lithgow area residents to the facility,' he said.
'A need for jobs'
It's an ongoing battle and we deserve better than this...
- Cr Cass Coleman
Lithgow mayor Maree Statham, Cr Goodwin, Cr Deanna Goodsell, Cr Bryce, Cr Stuart McGhie and Cr Col O'Connor are all in favour of the idea for the facility.
Cr Goodwin said there was a need for jobs in Lithgow and the precinct would also bring other industries.
"It's good technology, it's great economically for our area, it will be a game changer for Lithgow if we do get it," he said.
Cr Coleman said herself, Cr Lesslie and Cr Mahony were standing by what they believe in by putting forward a rescission motion.
"We can put the rescission motion up with the three of us, I'm guessing we'll lose it but we're making a stand," she said.
She said she opposed the EfW because Lithgow "shouldn't be a dumping ground for Sydney's waste".
"It's an ongoing battle and we deserve better than this, we're not a dumping ground, we're on the base of a National Park.
"If it's such a great idea build it closer to the source, but Western Sydney don't want it," she said.
She said she had concerns in relation to the health of residents and how the pollution would affect them in the future.
"I can't support a project that could potentially affect the health of residents, we don't know what particulates will go into the air," she said.
A damaging proposal
Interest is in engaging community members early and often - well before an actual proposal is submitted...
- Greenspot CEO Brett Hawkins
Cr Lesslie believes the waste incinerator won't bring jobs to Lithgow, but instead do the opposite.
"I believe it will have the opposite effect, potential investors will be turned off from coming here, under a cloud of pollution," he said.
He said the transportation of the waste from Sydney would be a cost on the community, the roads and the health of residents.
"No one has taken into consideration the very geographic nature of Wallerawang and the danger to the community that this waste will impose," he said.
"It's a money making scheme."
Mr Hawkins said a common question from the community was 'Why Wallerawang? and why not Sydney?'.
"The NSW government has chosen four precincts Parkes, Richmond Valley, Southern Goulburn Mulwaree and West Lithgow/Wallerawang, because existing infrastructure is available to support EfW technology, and they are locations that have been prioritised for economic and workforce development," he responded.
"Wallerawang is an especially unique and promising site because it has a range of what Greenspot calls core enablers," he said.
Those core enablers are energy generation and storage, water security, transport networks and digital connectivity.
Mr Hawkins said community members had also asked specific and highly technical questions such as the height of the proposed stack and the exact pollutants released.
"These are the types of questions to be addressed in the EIS, which would not be undertaken at such a preliminary stage," he said.
"It occurs as part of the formal proposal process. Our interest is in engaging community members early and often - well before an actual proposal is submitted," he said.
"While this could sometimes mean we don't yet have the specific answers people seek, involving the greater Lithgow community at the earliest stages is our highest priority."
Mr Hawkins said Greenspot's goal was to respect the heritage of the Wallerawang site and prioritise developments that find new solutions to old problems.
"And we want to position Wallerawang as a leader in Australia's transition to a sustainable circular economy," he said.
Mayor Statham, Cr Bryce, Cr McGhie, Cr O'Connor, Cr Goodwin and Cr Goodsell have told the Lithgow Mercury they will respond further on the proposed project next week, following the community consultations.
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