Brumby's toxic policies put Victorians and environment at risk
Wednesday, June 09, 2010
The Brumby Government is grossly mismanaging the disposal of toxic chemicals, gases, explosive and radioactive material, exposing families, communities and the environment to significant risk, Shadow Minister for Environment and Climate Change Mary Wooldridge said.
Today’s Hazardous Waste Management report by the Victorian Auditor-General reveals a raft of failures, including poor reporting and compliance monitoring and ineffective enforcement of regulations.
The Auditor-General has no confidence that Victorians or the environment are safe from the effects of poor management of hazardous waste, such as groundwater contamination, toxic fumes and pollution of rivers and streams.
The alarming report reveals that the Brumby Government’s mismanagement has resulted in:
- only half of hazardous waste landfills had environmental audits;
- a massive drop in the number of inspections of hazardous waste producers and transporters; and
- taxpayers picking up millions of dollars of remediation due to the government’s incompetence and mismanagement.
The Auditor-General reports that the Brumby Government made a conscious decision to reduce monitoring and enforcement of the disposal of these toxic materials.
“Today’s report reveals palpable neglect and a failure to ensure that Victorians are protected from these highly dangerous chemicals, gases and liquids,” Ms Wooldridge said.
“All Victorians have the right to question assurances from John Brumby that hazardous waste is transported, stored and disposed of appropriately.
”This report exposes the Brumby Government as incompetent, ineffective and lacking any accountability for making decisions that impact on our environment and directly affect the health and safety of Victorian families.
“John Brumby has massively downgraded our knowledge, monitoring and enforcement of hazardous waste and as a result put families, communities and our environment at risk of harm,” Ms Wooldridge said.
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