Norsk Hydro’s proposal to retain toxic waste on its Kurri Kurri site will send a shiver down the collective spine of Hunter residents, says Hunter MP Joel Fitzgibbon.
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He said the proposal to use an old clay quarry on a five-hectare site to dispose of the spent pot linings flew in the face of industry international and local practice.
“The NSW government must immediately reject the proposal,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
“No assessment process is capable of reassuring local residents that the proposed savings measure poses no threat to human health and the local environment.”
Norsk Hydro plans to build a containment system for its Kurri Kurri smelter’s spent pot linings that would see the 2000 hectare site remediated within five to 10 years.
Under the proposal, a metre of clay, sealed with HDPE plastic, would form the floor of the containment cell.
On top of this would be 30 centimetres of sand for leak monitoring topped with 30cm of gravel.
The cell would be capped with 60 centimetres of compacted clay and another plastic liner.
Sand, rock, and soil would complete the cell, which Hydro said would be monitored in perpetuity.
The containment cell would store an estimated 350,000 tonnes of refractory materials and the spent pot linings.
A large portion of this waste would come from an old waste stockpile that was capped in 1995.
But Mr Fitzgibbon said there was at least one better method available.
“Reprocessing will be more expensive, but it is the only way of
safely disposing of the large amount of waste the company is holding,” he said.
Hydro intended to lodge plans to dispose of the materials in coming days.
