A DEVELOPMENT proposal for Caraban Rd, which does not follow buffer guidelines designed to protect sensitive land uses such as residential development, is due to go before a State Administrative Tribunal hearing on October 28.
According to an officer’s September 2021 report the development proposal seeks to extract up to 200,000 tonnes of material per annum – made up of 100,000 tonnes of agricultural lime, 50,000 tonnes of limestone and 50,000 tonnes of sand – with the applicant estimating there is enough material for the development to operate for 30 years.
So far Gingin councillors have been backing Woodridge residents opposed to the quarry by voting against the Shire of Gingin administration’s recommendations to approve the proposal, which included an extensive list of conditions, including that approval be limited to a 10-year period.
A 1000m buffer from sensitive land uses is the guideline for extractive industries involving crushing and screening operations but if approved the proposed development for Lot M1332 Caraban Rd, will have an 800m buffer from Woodridge estate located immediately to the east and a 300m buffer to an intensive horticulture farm situated immediately to the east.
An explanatory note for state planning policy 2.4 says planning for basic raw materials SPP 2.4 has changed so that the policy application area has expanded to be state-wide – it was formerly limited to specific local governments in close proximity to Perth.
The July 2021 guidelines say the EPA’s separation distances between industrial and sensitive land uses (GS3) should guide the establishment of separation distances to protect community health, safety and amenity.
The basic raw materials guidelines also say the decision-maker is required to give due regard to relevant planning policy when making decisions on basic raw material proposals, particularly the impacts on sensitive land uses.
The EPA guidelines say if a new industrial land use is proposed near existing or proposed sensitive development and the separation distance is less than the generic distance, a scientific study based on site- and industry-specific information must be presented to demonstrate that a lesser distance will not result in unacceptable impacts.
Potential sensitive land uses within 1.5km of Lot M1332 Caraban Rd. Graphic: Ramboll Australia GIS map“If the distance from the industrial land use to the sensitive land use is less than the recommended separation distance, and it cannot be demonstrated that unacceptable environmental impacts are likely to be avoided, then other options should generally be pursued,’’ the guidelines say.
In August 2020 King Dr resident Damien Nelson said the westerly winds which blew most of the year meant dust from the proposed quarry would affect everyone in Woodridge.
In September 2021 councillor Frank Johnson put while putting forward an alternative motion that the council refuse the application for the quarry said Woodridge was there before the quarry proposal and keeping the dust and noise suppressed would be hard for the applicant.
At the time Shire of Gingin President Wayne Fewster said the difference between the proposed quarry and an already established quarry in the area was the direction of the prevailing winds.
When commenting on the separation distance between the proposed development and surrounding land uses the Shire of Gingin’s September 2021 report on the item said technical studies had been provided by the applicant (acoustic report, dust management plan and traffic assessment) to demonstrate the buffer distance provided was adequate but another document said precise strategies for the operational management of dust had not yet been developed by the proponents and were likely to be presented through the conditions of approval and the mediation process.
However, an officer’s report submitted to the August 16 council meeting included a dust management plan, which said in relation to wind direction and strength the major feature was the presence of strong easterly winds in the morning in the summer that were replaced by a strong south westerly sea breeze in the afternoon.
The dust management plan includes two substantial planting areas located to the east and north of the main operational areas proposed as visual and dust impact buffers for the Woodridge community and the market garden land use respectively.
The officer’s report for the August 2022 council meeting said the revised dust management plan confirmed there would be four stockpiles up to a height of 4m, the screening had been relocated closer to the development footprint and the operation of the air quality monitors would be overseen by third party consultants contracted by the proponent.
A July 2022 dust management plan says the proponent has committed to monitoring particulate levels using a fraction optical particle counter.The revised dust management plan said the air quality monitors would monitor air quality and trigger an alarm when a guideline, which the officer assumed was the national environmental pollution measure, was exceeded.
A March 2011 Department of Environment and Conservation guideline on preparing a plan for the management of dust and associated contaminants arising from various activities such as quarrying says human health effects of dust tend to be associated with particles with an aerodynamic diameter of 10 µm or less (≤ PM10).
The officer recommended that if the proposal was approved conditions including that the dust management plan would incorporate conformation that the operator would keep an up-to-date complaints register, that was to be made available to the Shire of Gingin within 14 days upon written request.
Another recommended condition was requiring conformation prior to operation of the quarry that the operator would install dust deposition gauges along the northern and eastern property boundaries to monitor ambient air quality including the presence of dust particles.
Other recommended conditions included that the monitoring data (including a summary of the results) was to be provided to the shire annually as part of the extractive industry licence renewal process or within 14 days upon a written request and confirmation that the onsite manager’s details would be located at the entrance gate, viewable to the public.
