The pungent fuel-oil spill at Rutherford last week is yet another sad example of naive and careless environmental practices, which threaten the health of the local ecosystem and residents.
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I am well aware of previous Environmental Protection Authority investigations and the Maitland Mercury’s involvement in the 18-year incident of an odour, which was omitted from the Rutherford Industrial Estate.
It seems like this will be just another incident that will be largely ignored to the detriment of the community and its surroundings.
Having studied and worked with hydrocarbon contaminants for several years, I can appreciate the risk of the reported crisis. These contaminants when mixed with water produce a heterogeneous mixture, with the oil visibly sitting on top of the water. The visible separation of oil and water aids the contaminants spreading, but also helps in detecting the affected sites and removing the pollution.
It’s quite possible that the spill occurred sometime before the leak was detected, but due to the lack of rain in the area, did not spread to an area frequented by the public. Without rain, it is possible that the oil may have been concentrated in a single area and left to soak into the groundwater.
It is the responsibility of businesses to monitor and manage their hazardous chemicals by regularly checking their confines. If a discrepancy is found it is again the business’ responsibility to comply with mandatory legislation outlined by organising testing of the hazard, determining available site remediation options and contacting the EPA in an effort to minimise the severity of the incident on the environment.
As I previously stated, the Rutherford spill posed a great risk to the local ecosystem and community. Among the chemicals released in the spill was benzene, a known carcinogenic, which can cause a variety of cancers as well as lead to anaemia.
Luckily for the community of Rutherford there was not enough benzene released to cause such sickness.
It is however imperative that the company responsible for the contamination is identified and monitored to prevent further spills, and that a penalty precedent is set for future businesses that damage the environment.
Government agencies are sometimes hesitant to get involved in remediation work, and if the previous 18-year EPA investigation is anything to go by then residents will have to wait some time before this incident is on Maitland MP Robyn Parker’s immediate agenda.
Without finding those responsible for the spill, this issue may be forgotten until it occurs again. There is no doubt this incident has significantly damaged one of the last bushland areas in Rutherford.
If a business is found to be responsible for the spill authorities must serve the right penalty, which in my opinion is a significant fine to help fund rehabilitation efforts for the damaged area and also mandatory environmental education for all employed in the business.
The “smell test” that is currently being employed by concerned residents should not be the long-term method of monitoring these environmental incidents.
- Darren Keath is a 21-year-old School of Environmental Science student at the University of Newcastle.
