Electorate Media Releases

GARRETT MUST GET ON WITH PLATYPUS PROJECT

16th March 2009

Member for North Sydney, Joe Hockey MP, has urged Environment Minister, Peter Garrett, to pull out all stops to get the remediation of HMAS Platypus underway.

“This is an important project both for local residents and for all Sydneysiders.  The opportunity to create a wonderful new Harbourside promenade and to clean up a toxic hot spot has been delayed for too long.

“Just this weekend media reports identified Neutral Bay as one of the high priority areas of the Harbour for remediation.

“Yet almost 18 months since the Howard government announced $40 million for the decontamination of Platypus we are now only just seeing signs that an agreement between the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust and the Defence Department may be close for the funding to flow.

“The Opposition has repeatedly raised this issue in Senate estimates and in their most recent hearings, the Director of the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust revealed that negotiations have occurred without any ministerial intervention.

“From my long involvement in the fight to save Platypus, I know that progress will continue to be slow unless leadership is shown by the responsible Ministers.  The wheels of the Defence bureaucracy turn slowly on these matters unless there is direct pressure from Ministers to secure action.

“As a result of Minister Garrett’s indifference to this project it will now be at least another two and a half years before we see Platypus decontaminated and work started on converting this into a publicly accessible part of the Harbour foreshore.

“We also know from Senate estimates hearings that the final consultations for the future plan for Platypus have concluded with the NSW government.  It’s back on Peter Garrett’s desk and I would urge him to make a decision about the plan for Platypus so that the community can be assured of the future for this site.

“Residents have been left in the dark during this period and I would urge the Minister and the Harbour Trust to recommence the consultation process by reactivating the Platypus Working Group and by also convening a public meeting to discuss with the community the next steps involved in the decontamination of the site.

“This will be a major decontamination project and the community needs to know how it will impact on them.  For example, the community needs assurance that spoil will be removed by barge and that there will be efforts made to reduce the odour of the tar pits which, when the concrete lid is removed, will be considerable.

“This project is too important to be left on the back burner and we need some leadership and drive from the Minister to make sure that this site does become part of the public domain and that the toxic soup that lies under the site is properly cleaned up," Mr Hockey said.