7 April 2006
Greens MP Lee Rhiannon today called on the NSW government to upgrade emergency services along the rail and road route earmarked to transport the cyanide destined for the Lake Cowal gold mine.
"The cyanide will be moved through the local government areas of Dubbo, Parkes, Bland, Weddin and Forbes. The state government needs to upgrade emergency services in these areas to handle any accidents," Ms Rhiannon said.
"I have been questioning government ministers about the cyanide route and this information has only just been revealed.
"The cyanide will be railed from Gladstone in Queensland to Chullora in Sydney. It will then be trucked from Chullora to Parramatta before it is railed to Dubbo. From Dubbo it will be trucked to the mine near West Wyalong.
"With 6,000 tonnes of cyanide travelling this route every year there is a grave danger of a poisonous spill on a major highway. The RTA's own figures suggest that up to 10 per cent of trucks are involved in a mishap in any given year.
"The US state of Montana had 62 cyanide spills and leaks between 1982 and 1998 before finally banning this kind of mining. Let's learn from that experience and not repeat those mistakes.
"This mine should never have been given approval. Now it is starting operations every effort needs to be made to protect the environment and communities and that means more resources for emergency services along the route," Ms Rhiannon said.
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