Daily test for lead in Mount Isa air
Michael McKenna; 1/8/08
Swiss mining giant Xstrata will for the first time face daily independent monitoring of its lead emissions over Mount Isa after more than 10 per cent of children in the central Queensland town were found to have dangerously high levels of the metal in their blood. After decades of inaction, the Queensland Government will next month take over Xstrata’s self-regulation of its heavy metal emissions control to provide openness and public confidence amid a series of looming civil trials over alleged negligence and widespread air, water and soil contamination. The crackdown - in which Xstrata will also be compelled to release its own monitoring reports, which will then be made public every month - follows recent revelations by The Australian that an independent study had found household dust samples contained lead levels up to 40 times greater than in international guidelines.
See: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24110279-2702,00.html