Last night 100 Lara locals came together to chat all things incinerator. A research-driven session, and great to see what the next steps are and how we can continue to advocate.
What struck me most was the tone. This wasn't a room full of people shouting. It was a room full of people with printouts.
01 / The concerns raisedWhat the session set out.
Figure 01 · From the presentation
Five concerns put to the room.
No Environment Effects Statement
An EES is the most rigorous environmental assessment process available in Victoria. The group's central concern is that one has not been required for a facility of this type and scale.
No business case
Questions about whether the underlying economic case has been published or independently tested.
Engineering design incomplete
Concerns that key design detail remained unresolved at the point approvals were being progressed.
EPA development licence issued regardless
The question the group put simply: given the above, what exactly was approved?
What did the EPA approve?
The closing slide, and the fairest summary of the whole evening. Residents are not claiming an answer — they are asking for one.
These are concerns raised by the community group at the session. They are questions put to decision-makers, not findings.
02 / Why I attend theseTurning up is most of it.
I'm not an environmental engineer and I'm not going to pretend I can adjudicate an emissions model from the back of a hall. What I can do is turn up, listen properly, and help make sure the questions reach the people who are obliged to answer them.
The pattern I keep seeing across Lara issues — Serendip, the budget, this — is the same. Residents do the work. They read the documents, they organise the meeting, they prepare the slides. And then they hit a wall where nobody is required to respond to them.
A hundred people gave up a weeknight to read planning documents. The least the process owes them is an answer.— David Greenwood OAM
03 / Where this sitsCouncil, state and the EPA.
Figure 02 · Who decides what
Knowing which door to knock on.
| Body | Role |
|---|---|
| EPA Victoria | Environmental licensing and regulation of emissions and operations. |
| State Government | Waste policy, and the decision on whether an Environment Effects Statement is required. |
| City of Greater Geelong | Planning considerations within its remit, and — importantly — the ability to formally advocate on behalf of residents. |
| The community | Submissions, questions on the record, and sustained organised pressure. Which, in practice, is what moves the other three. |
04 / Staying involvedThe practical bit.
I'd encourage everyone to connect with Say NO to Lara Big Incinerator to keep up to date. They're doing the research, tracking the process and organising the sessions — and a campaign like this works on continuity, not on one big night.
If you attended the session, or you've read the technical material and can help others understand it, I'd like to hear from you. The single most useful thing in a campaign like this is someone who can translate a technical document into plain English for the rest of us. Email david@centrestage.org.au with "Incinerator" in the subject.
