Dear Echo News,
When is the state Labor government going to take responsibility for its poor irresponsible decision making in regards to environmental contamination?
In 1989, the Labor government’s environmental minister approved in Bassendean the stockpiling of 250,000 cubic metres, 20m high, 4.5ha and between 400,000 and 500,000 tons of toxic contaminated waste after a fertiliser factory was demolished.
The developers of the site stated that it was too costly to remove the waste and so applied for state government permission to stockpile it on-site in this enormous ‘containment cell’ which astonishingly was granted.
As a result of this irresponsible, ridiculous decision the groundwater is now contaminated with arsenic, heavy metals, copper, zinc, iron, aluminium, ammonia, fluorides, sulfuric acid, all by-products of superphosphates.
This groundwater enters what is known as the underground Chapman drain which resurfaces nearby and enters the Swan River via the Ashfield flats-wetlands only 800m (approximately) from contamination point.
I’ve written many letters to the editor over the years, emails to our local council and local members of parliament.
I had questions asked in parliament about this problem back in 2014 (Hansard, question without notice number 493 asked in the legislative council on May 7, 2014 by Hon Lynn Maclaren) with little response from East Metropolitan MLC Helen Morton representing the Minister for the Environment.
In 2016 Bassendean council started discussions on the removal of the cell but nothing has happened since.
Last week the mayor of Bassendean put out a statement by way of social media advocating for the removal of containment cell after meeting with heads of agencies event in the city.
Time to do the right thing in my opinion!
G Coleman
Bassendean
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Dear Echo News,
In a dire warning from mother nature the winter creeks that 20 years ago ran from April to November down the western Greenmount side and the southern Coulston Road side of Greenmount Hill have barely run this year and have now stopped due to record low rainfall.
One creek that used to cascade down a pretty rock waterfall hasn’t flowed at all.
In another sign that a record-breaking El Niño is approaching, I have never seen as many xanthorrhoea kangaroo tails bloom as mother nature tries to set seeds for the coming bushfires that used to generate new growth.
Sadly, the Department of Conservation and local politicians have dropped the ball when it comes to watsonia eradication and now the Coulston Road side is a mass of what will become tinder dry watsonia.
This means that any fire will be increased in temperature and intensity destroying any native seed.
Don’t worry – the taxpayer will pay for all those helicopters and fire trucks to protect our homes by increased insurance.
What if the greatest danger to our society were not evil but stupidity?
Stupidity occurs when an individual voluntarily renounces their own capacity for judgement.
“Change can only occur by accepting responsibility for self-examination,” said Dietrich Bonhoeffler.
As the cries call for relief from $3 a litre diesel as we fill our gas guzzling cars, we have no one to blame but ourselves.
Tell me again that climate change is a hoax.
Dr C Hughes
Greenmount
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Dear Echo News,
Environmentally destructive weeds such as freesia and bridal creeper need to be controlled urgently to protect the hundreds of high-quality bush reserves in the hills.
Freesia isn’t just a verge weed, it rapidly gets far into good bush, blocking out the local natives and leading the way for many other weeds.
Bridal creeper is spread far and wide by birds. It grows over bushes and small natives, completely smothering them.
The result is a weed patch where previously there was a great density and diversity of native plants.
Stopping this destruction is not rocket science and we already know what to do.
The materials and equipment are cheap, but council budgets provide very few weed control staff.
Please join a bushcare friends group, we need a lot more volunteers including manual weeders and authorised volunteer herbicide sprayers.
Always begin by targeting the peripheries or leading edges of a weed infestation to stop it spreading and give the natives a chance to come back in, even if this means you run out of time to tackle the middle.
Don’t let them spread.
MD Jones
Friends of John Forrest National Park
