The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has approved a Chinese company's plan to build a lead battery recycling plant in the Latrobe Valley, east of Melbourne.
The company, Chunxing, plans to build a plant capable of recycling 50,000 tonnes of spent batteries into 28,000 tonnes of lead at an industrial site in Hazelwood North, a predominantly farming community south of Morwell.
The proposal has drawn strong opposition from local community members who fear long-term health risk from lead emissions from the plant, which will be built 1.7 kilometres from the local primary school.
But after 10 months of consideration, EPA manager of development assessments Stephen Adamthwaite said community concerns about lead prompted the environmental regulator to seek more information from Chunxing about its plans.
"Essentially, the proposal has gotten to a place where the lead emissions are very low and compare very favourably with other facilities across the world," Mr Adamthwaite said.
The EPA said the factory was unlikely to cause land contamination and added that the approval included "strict" air emissions limits.
Chunxing will be required to prove that the plant can meet EPA requirements during the commissioning phase.
Community still 'digesting' decision
The EPA received 171 public submissions about the project, many from community members expressing their opposition.
Hazelwood North Community Action Group spokesperson Andy Tegart said he was disappointed by the EPA's decision.
"To be honest, it's a bit early to give you sort of a full and frank view of all this, given they've just released their approval and [we] haven't really had an opportunity to digest what the nature of all that approval is," Mr Tegart said.
He said the EPA's lead standards were outdated and Victoria's limits were "significantly higher" than other developed countries.
The group is concerned about the plant's possible impact on health and the environment.
It has 21 days to decide whether it will appeal the EPA's decision via the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
'No risk' to community, company says
Ascend Waste and Environment managing director Geoff Latimer, who produced Chunxing's works approval application, said the plant's lead emissions would be 300 times below the EPA standard.
Mr Latimer said he understood the community's concern, but noted that the EPA found the project posed "no risk".
"There's sort of been a view expressed by some that it's either some sort of pollution scenario … that comes with a few jobs, or if you don't want pollution, you don't get jobs.
"That's a simplicity — it's not not the case.
"There's no health or environmental trade-off in this."
Mr Latimer said there were additional safeguards and monitoring that would be in place during the plant's commissioning process.
The Latrobe City Council is set to consider a planning permit application from the company at an upcoming meeting.
