[Greens-Media] PARNELL: Community, experts brushed aside as BHPB pushes China Option

[Parnell]

Media Release
Friday 13th May 2011


Community, experts brushed aside as BHPB pushes China Option


BHPB has ignored the thousands of submissions from community, scientific experts and Government agencies and will attempt to push forward with a near identical project for the Olympic Dam mega-expansion.

In an initial reaction to the release of the enormous Supplementary Environmental Impact Statement of the Olympic Dam mega expansion, SA Greens Parliamentary Leader, Mark Parnell MLC said:

"The concerns of over 4,000 South Australians who gave feedback on the Roxby Expansion have been largely ignored.

"BHPB Billiton wants to send jobs to China; they want to use dirty fossil fuels and they want to build a massive desal plant right next door to one of our most precious marine sites.

"This stuff can only be dug up once. They've got to do it right - becoming China's quarry is not the way to do it.

"The only chance the Government's got to maximise the economic return and jobs for South Australians, while minimising the enormous environmental costs, is if the processing of our minerals is done right here in our state.

"Today we have heard what the company wants to do.  But these are our resources and the Government must stand up on our behalf and insist on a better deal: more jobs and economic return and far less environmental cost.

"Under BHP Billiton's current model, we will be left with a huge environmental bill to pay - with major risks to our marine life, our groundwater, our air quality and a massive increase in the state's carbon pollution.

"The company wants to export South Australians jobs to China.  The Rann Government can and must insist on processing our minerals here in South Australia"



For further comment contact Craig Wilkins on 0434 007 893


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