re: 60 minutes article last night...orica response...

re: 60 minutes article last night...orica response http://www.orica.com.au/BUSINESS/COR/orica/COR00254.NSF/Page/News_60_Minutes:_Orica_Response

60 Minutes: Orica Response
18 June, 2006

60 Minutes tonight broadcast a series of allegations in regard to Orica’s Botany site. Orica would like to make the following observations:

There is nothing in this story that has not already been communicated by Orica to the local community, current and former employees, the State Government and its many agencies. Indeed the Botany site has been the subject of extensive media scrutiny over a number of years.


The events described on 60 Minutes occurred at a time when industry standards were very different from today. Today Orica is doing its best to address legacy issues as quickly and effectively as it can in an open an honest way as can be seen at two dedicated web sites: www.oricabotanygroundwater.com and www.oricahcb.com.


In relation to the legacy of Groundwater contamination: Orica has invested $167 million in the construction and operation of a state-of-the art Ground Water Treatment plant. The underground plume’s movement towards Botany Bay has been stopped. Residents have been required by the NSW Government not to use the bores which are a unique feature of this suburb.


In relation to HCB: Orica has committed $70 million for the safe disposal of this waste from Botany. Two options are being examined, the siting within NSW of a destruction facility or the export of the waste to licensed existing facilities in Germany. This process is being carried out in close consultation with the NSW Government appointed expert Independent Review Panel (IRP). The waste is stored in highly regulated safe stores and the site licence includes the Federal Government’s HCB Waste Management Plan.


Orica’s commitment to its employees and former employees is long standing and genuine. Orica keeps close contact with many former employees, many of whom keep close links with the company. A number participate in Orica’s annual medical checks.


Orica has a good track record of cleaning up sites and transforming them for other beneficial uses; for example, our former sites at Cabarita and Rhodes in Sydney and our site at Ascot Vale in Melbourne. If you drove by them today you would see how they have changed for the better.


Orica has a series of programs which have been established in response to community feedback. These programs include a rainwater tank rebate, designed as a means to replace a lost amenity; a school based science program in the local waterways; residential bore monitoring and a local community air monitoring program.


Reference was made on 60 Minutes to a British village and contamination by ICI. There is absolutely no connection between the situation at Botany and that in the UK.

Orica was established as an independent publicly listed company in 1998. Prior to that it was a subsidiary of a British company. Orica takes its social responsibility very seriously and is constantly working to build a long term good relationship with the community.