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About GVEPA
The Gara Valley Environmental Preservation Association (GVEPA – pronounced ‘JEEPA’) is a community-based association that was formed in October, 2002 by residents who were seriously concerned by the Armidale Dumaresq Council’s announcement, via the newspapers, that it had decided to build a new landfill on the property ‘Ballantrae’. This property is accessed via the Argyle-Mining Vale Rd that runs north off the Waterfall Way.
Council’s consultants had considered a range of options, a common characteristic being that all were for sale at the time, and the Ballantrae site, referred to in Council’s documentation as Site 9, was considered the best. Local action was galvanised by the Council’s announcement because it was met with disbelief that such a decision could be made.
GVEPA was formed quickly and set about clarifying its concerns and lobbying Council. Councillors, relevant Council staff and Council’s consultant were all invited to meet with GVEPA representatives on-site and to discuss the pros and cons of Site 9 for the new landfill. Animated discourse resulted and GVEPA’s resolve to oppose the proposal with all its energy was only hardened by the on-site meeting.
Several meetings were convened by GVEPA to develop its case and when Council agreed to give the group a hearing at the full Council meeting on 16 December, 2002 it focussed on producing a written submission that would be spoken to via a power-point presentation. The basic logic of that document can be summarised in six points:
- grossly inadequate Communication between Council and stakeholders
- unclear and disputed Site Selection criteria and emphases
- lack of Clarity of Proposal
- no account taken of Social Impact
- site not in the Long-term Community Interests of Armidale
- unacceptable Environmental Risk of contamination of the Gara Water Supply
The presentation of GVEPA’s concerns was duly made to Council, before a full gallery, and ultimately resulted in a public forum being convened by Council, which was well attended by community members generally, and which led to the formation of the Armidale Dumaresq Landfill Community Consultative Committee (ADLCCC), on which GVEPA was given three positions. This committee was charged with reviewing the site selection process and data, and providing Advice to Council on a preferred site.
The ADLCCC started its deliberations in April, 2003 and after a slow start recommended to Council that an appropriately qualified consultant be engaged to review the previous consultant’s work. This consultant was Maunsell Australia and its draft report was presented to the ADLCCC in November, 2003 but was criticised energetically by several committee members, including the GVEPA representatives, primarily for its obscurity regarding data analysis and its inadequate justification of its conclusions.
Despite written submissions from GVEPA representatives and others, the final Maunsell Report still did not address the perceived methodological deficiencies, though it did reflect recognition of the threat to the Gara Water Supply posed by Site9. Curiously, Maunsell stated that it had been misinformed earlier by ADC staff that the Gara Dam was no longer part of Armidale’s back-up water supply. That change saw the Site 9 option relegated down the preference list.
With Council elections looming, the ADLCCC was under pressure to report to Council and to the surprise of the GVEPA members, at the March meeting an apparently orchestrated set of motions was put and finally carried. In essence, the Maunsell Report was ‘accepted’ by the Committee and referred on to Council. That report listed Site 7 as the preferred site for the new landfill.
GVEPA is again active, this time attempting to avert the landfill being located on Site 7. Just as Council and its original consultant in 2002 was relaxed about placing a landfill on Site 9, a short distance from a water supply dam, where leachate would inevitably end up, in 2004 it is relaxed about locating a regional landfill even closer to the same river (though downstream of the Gara Dam). The fact that both of these sites, and many others in the Maunsell recommendations, would result in leachate entering the World Heritage National Park waterways, does not appear to be a matter of concern to Council or its consultants!
GVEPA is unconvinced by the assurances of Council staff and its consultants that any landfill that it builds will not leak. This flies in the face of opinion expressed broadly around the world that inevitably, all landfills do leak and so will pose an environmental threat. GVEPA remains steadfastly committed to working to sway public opinion against locating any new landfill where it is possible for the World Heritage Wilderness area to be contaminated. In it’s view, even the smallest possible risk is too much – we are obliged to preserve such places, not defile them.
Contact Details:
President
Geoffrey Fox
(02) 6775 3912
P.O. Box 1699
Armidale NSW 2350
Other Contacts
Dr David Laird
(02) 6775 3743
Mr Christian Quaife
(02) 6771 2721
Mr Dan Calvert
(02) 6775 3999
