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Warnings on lead levels ignored
Ian Gerard
13 December 2006

MOUNT Isa city council and mining giant Xstrata were told last year that lead levels in the western Queensland town's soil and waterways far exceeded the national contamination standards, but failed to act on the alarming findings.


Mark Patrick Taylor, a senior lecturer in environmental science at Sydney's Macquarie University, said he tried to tell Mount Isa Council and the Swiss mining company on a number of occasions that the amount of lead in the community's soil and river was great enough to trigger a federal Government inquiry.

The Australian revealed yesterday that one in 10 children in Mount Isa aged between one and four had blood-lead levels higher than recommended by the World Health Organisation.

Dr Taylor said he told Xstrata, most recently in February, that its profitable zinc and copper mines continued to contaminate the Leichhardt River, which runs between the town and the mine and drains into Mount Isa's drinking water supply, with heavy metals that "grossly exceeded" federal government sediment quality guidelines.

In the study, completed this year but yet to be published, the concentration of lead was found to be up to 84 times greater downstream from the mine than it was upstream. The concentration of copper was 117 times greater downstream.

After taking soil samples from 60 total metal concentration points across the town, Dr Taylor found the average lead content was 325 milligrams per kilogram, well above the National Environmental Protection Council health investigation level of 300 milligrams per kilogram for standard residential sites, day-care centres and schools. Some samples were even found to have exceeded 5000 milligrams -- more than 16 times the national standard.

But Dr Taylor said that despite the findings, neither Mt Isa Council nor Xstrata agreed to discuss the results with him.

"I have been trying to engage the council and mine to participate but I've basically been stonewalled," Dr Taylor said. "They don't want to talk about it and I have been banging my head up against the wall for five years."

Mount Isa Mayor Ron McCullough said that despite the findings and the number of children in the community with elevated blood-lead levels, no further investigation was necessary. "We have been down this path before and one of the reasons we didn't show any interest was that we have been there, we know the river was remediated," he said.

Xstrata metallurgical processing general manager Fred White said yesterday the company was not responsible for the raised lead levels in Mount Isa. He said an audit into the mine's operations two months ago showed "the risks ... were being managed".

Mr White said the report's findings were alarmist.

He added he was not aware of an approach by Dr Taylor.

"According to regular testing by the Mount Isa Water Board, the river is a perfectly safe water and food source."

Contact Bagolie Friedman Injury Lawyers if you or your family has been poisoned by lead for a confidential and free consultation.

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