Southern Waste Solutions (SWS) has cancelled its Open Day at its Copping facility due to security concerns, but all persons genuinely interested in visiting the site to be informed, will be invited for personal guided tours.
SWS Chief Executive Officer Christine Bell said security concerns had arisen after public comments from members of the protest group.
“We really wanted to hold an Open Day for those people who are genuinely interested in a tour of the facility, however, we cannot under any circumstances put them in a situation that poses a potential risk to their safety or wellbeing,” Ms Bell said.
“We do not want to overstate the issue, but there is a potential security risk and our first concern has to be for the safety of those who come onto the site.
“We will still make a site inspection available to those who wish to see the site, but it will done it in a way that doesn’t pose a possible threat to their safety.”
SWS will contact the people who responded to the Open Day invitation to explore how their requirements can best be met.
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Comments (3)
Why is it that it is ok to bypass proper community consultation, print blatant mistruths and bulldoze deomcratic processes but ‘talk within community groups’ - which BTW had been vetoed by the group - are a risk to the community? What about the hazardous waste and the risk to the larger area? Shows that these people are not interested in democracy at all.
Ms Bell should identify and make public the source of alleged “public comments” that she claims suggested a security risk. Yes of course concerned members of the community would accept SWS’s invitation for a tour of the site(as I did). Ms Bell obviously had second thoughts when she saw the number of acceptances and then sought a way to back out while smearing a sincere and highly concerned community group to cover her ineptitude. Identify these public comments Ms Bell and let’s see if anyone(eg Tas Police) agrees that they constitute a security risk.
This whole idea that we were ever going to get a look at the C Cell site is a joke.
We were first told that we would get the opportunity for an open day months ago.
This privilege was later withdrawn over concerns of OH&S.
I am sure the public would gladly sign a waiver prior to entering the site in order to alleviate any potential litigation.
When calls were made to organise a spot on the “Contiki tour” of the Copping site the person who answered the phone indicated she knew nothing of the event.
Is this yet another example of SWS inability to co ordinate its affairs or something more?
SWS should reveal the source of the alleged “Public” comments that lead to the last minute cancellation of the site visit, otherwise the community must assume this whole tour idea was merely a desperate stunt designed to smear public opposition to their development.