EPA investigates dioxin emissions breach

Port Kembla metal manufacturer MM has come under scrutiny from the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for possibly breaching its licence conditions for dioxin emissions.

MM reported the breach after stack emission testing found levels of dioxins from the company’s Horizontal Billet Caster (HBC) had exceeded the licence limit.

The company has been ordered to shut down operation of its HBC, with the exception of controlled start-up testing, while the EPA investigates the cause of the breach.

The HBC will remain shut down until the EPA is satisfied that the cause of the high emissions has been fully identified and rectified, and that MM can operate within the conditions of its Environment Protection Licence.

The company’s licence limit for dioxins and furans is 0.1 nanograms per cubic metre (ng/m³); the result from the stack emission testing was 0.41 ng/m³. The licence limit reflects a measure of international best practice for controls for dioxin and not a health standard.

According to the NSW Ministry of Health, while the air levels of dioxins emitted from the stack are low enough not to cause acute or immediate health effects and the possibility of long-term health effects appears unlikely, the matter does call for “careful evaluation”.