Clearing the way Environmental weed removal from Fraser Ave Asset Protection Zone alcoa anglesea 2010 environment report march ANGLESEA ENVIRONMENT REPORT MARCH 2010 air Air Monitoring Stack Monitors Average Maximum Opacity g/min 10-minute average 0.058 0.143 Stack SO2 kg/min 1-hour average Licence limit 100kg/min 68.32 76.78 Ambient Monitors SO2 1 hour ppb Average Maximum Community Centre 0 66 Primary School 1 64 Mt Ingoldsby 1 45 Scout Camp 1 92 Camp Wilkin 1 18 Camp Road 1 118 Ambient Monitors SO2 Maximum 1 hour averages (ppb) Date 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Comm Centre 0 0 0 7 2 0 0 66 0 0 0 1 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 Primary School 0 0 1 41 6 0 1 45 1 0 0 6 3 12 64 2 9 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 24 0 0 25 2 0 0 Mt Ingoldsby 0 0 3 45 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 12 9 16 2 17 2 6 1 0 1 1 1 2 21 10 0 0 1 Scout Camp 0 0 1 2 1 5 1 5 52 1 0 2 2 2 3 14 56 1 79 51 7 0 44 0 92 7 0 1 4 1 0 Camp Wilkin 0 0 1 18 4 0 1 1 0 0 1 4 13 4 2 3 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 3 1 6 5 0 0 0 Camp Road 0 0 1 17 1 0 0 27 2 0 0 2 1 110 118 46 7 0 2 0 0 0 0 15 1 0 1 0 0 1 EPA Air Quality Objective 200 Alcoa Local Standard 170 1 2 5 ANGLESEA ENVIRONMENT REPORT MARCH 2010 water Water Storage Barwon Water storage levels for the Geelong system at 30% capacity. Stage 3 restrictions apply with a Winter exemption to permit limited residential garden watering. Water discharge ML March Total Ashponds (SP1) 121.3 375.2 Mine (SP4) 0 0 Water Monitoring SP1 18/03/2009 EPA limit pH Ashpond SP4 Lab Result Mine EPA limit 3 SP3 Lab Result 9 Final EPA limit No 5 Lab Result 4 - 10 7.5 9 7.2 Susp Solids 100 4 100 discharge 30 <4 Colour 50 4 50 at 50 5 Aluminium 10 0.25 10 time 5.5 0.28 Iron 10 0.43 20 of 4.0 0.13 Zinc 0.4 0.031 2.0 sampling 0.3 0.009 WATER WATER USE PER MONTH (ML) JAN FEB MAR Town Water 1.2 1.0 2.7 Bore Water 284 258 283 Mine Water 59 45 45 APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC TOTAL 2010 Town Water Progressive 4.9 2010 Bore Water Progressive 824.5 2010 Mine Water Progressive 148.8 ANGLESEA ENVIRONMENT REPORT MARCH 2010 asset protection zone weed removal Much of the Australian continent is fire-prone. This is particularly so in parts of Victoria where dry windy summer conditions, combined with electrical storms lead to frequent fires. Often these wildfires can be difficult to suppress and may cause significant economic damage. The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) has designated certain areas on the perimeter of the Anglesea Township as Asset Protection Zones (APZs). The APZ will provide the highest level of strategic protection to human life, property and highly valued assets vulnerable to damage by wildfire through radiant heat and ember attack. It is a buffer zone between a bush fire hazard and buildings, which is managed progressively to minimise fuel loads and reduce potential radiant heat levels, flame, ember and smoke attack on life and property. The width of the APZ will vary with slope, vegetation and construction level. It consists of an area maintained to minimal fuel loads. Some of the land managed by Alcoa Fraser Ave land before weed removal Anglesea (along Fraser Ave and bordering the Golf Club) falls into a designated APZ. Fuel management in APZs needs to be intensive and aims to maintain vegetation characteristics within defined limits. Alcoa Anglesea recently worked with a local contractor to complete the removal of environmental woody weeds including coast tea-tree and coastal wattle in order to reduce the fuel load in this APZ. The weeds were either hand pulled or cut with a chain saw and then mulched on site. The work took over 140 person-hours to complete. Over 50 cubic meters of mulch was then removed from the site and taken to Eumeralla Scout Camp for the mulching of their grounds. This piece of land has important flora values, so importantly we were able to comply with the APZ guidelines by removing only the environmental weeds. We will continue to manage the vegetation within this area as part of our ongoing land management work. Same parcel of land after weed removal PLANT OF THE ANGLESEA HEATH Common Pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana) Size: height of tussock 4m, seed head up to 6m Form: robust long-lived perennial plant Foliage: Leaves to about 2 m long with a prominent midrib and sharp edges of forward facing short teeth Flowers: attractive plumed flower heads carried on tall stems, generally white but can be pink or mauve. Flowers mid March to late May Habitat: Pampas grass appears to have no particular habitat preference and is found in a wide range of ecosystems Distribution: native to Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru, but now established throughout Australia Did you know? Pampas grass used to be a fairly benign garden plant in Australia, but the importation of new strains in the the aggressive weed we have today SELLONANA ANGLESEA ENVIRONMENT REPORT MARCH 2010 LAND RAINFALL (mm) JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC Monthly Long Term Average Rainfall 42.9 41.6 40.2 51.9 59.9 59.1 63.0 65.8 66.9 68.9 55.2 46.3 Monthly Rainfall 5.0 67.0 63.0 TOTAL 2010 Rainfall Total 135.0 Long Term Average Total 124.7 WATER TOWN WATER USE (ML) 2000 2009 2010 JAN FEB MAR 0.1 0.1 1.7 1.1 0.9 1.1 Amenity Water Use Process Water use Historical Annual Amenity Water Use 11.6 2.7 1.9 Historical Annual Process Water Use 23.9 13.5 3.1 APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV AIR GREENHOUSE GAS (GHG) TOTAL (Mt) & GHG EMISSION EFFICIENCY (t/mwH) 2000 GHG t 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 1227846 1265103 1504860 1448793 1468098 1309674 1491486 1396713 1423285 1291200 2010 Forecast t GHG t/MWh 2010 Forecast t/MWh 2010 forecast 1454588 1.24 1.19 1.21 1.21 1.20 1.21 1.20 1.18 1.20 1.16 1.16 DEC ANGLESEA ENVIRONMENT REPORT MARCH 2010 environmental improvement Environmental Management Targets MARCH 2010 Total 2010 Forecast 2010 Target Reportable Environmental Incidents 0 0 0 0 Env Near Miss vs Env Incident Run Rate (ratio) 3 6.3 6.3 2.5 100 100 100 90 MARCH 2010 Total 2010 Forecast 2010 Target Ambient SO2 (no. readings > 200ppb) 0 0 0 0 Stack SO2 (no. hrs > 100kg/min) 0 0 0 0 SO2 Load Reductions (lost MWh) 11 28 112 NA 1.17 1.16 1.16 1.20 0 0 0 0 MARCH 2010 Total 2010 Forecast 2010 Target Town Water (ML) 2.7 4.8 19.2 14.2 Bore Water (ML) 283 825 3298 4000 Waste Targets MARCH 2010 Total 2010 Forecast 2010 Target Waste to Landfill (t) 0 0 0 8 Solid Prescribed Waste to Landfill (t) 0 0 0 0 Monthly EHS ASAT Audit Completion (%) Air Emission Targets GHG Efficiency (t CO2 e/MWh) Opacity (10 min av > 0.25g/m3 norm. operation) Water Targets Mine Rehabilitation Targets 2010 Total 2010 Target 2010 Area to Clear (ha) 0 TBC 2010 Area to Rehabilitate (ha) 0 TBC OUR ENVIRONMENT AND OUR EMPLOYEE Hi Lisa. Congratulations on being selected as an Earthwatch Fellow for 2010. Tell us a little about the project you will be working on. I am being sponsored by Alcoa to head off to Gazi Bay in Kenya with an expert team from Earthwatch. In addition to rehabilitate degraded mangrove forests. In addition to planting mangrove seedlings on two beach sites, I will also help monitor the effect of these plantations on rates of beach erosion and on the animals dependent on these ecosystems. What are you looking forward to most? I am looking forward to seeing the practical, hands on side of environmental research and having 11 whole days to immerse myself in one project will be fantastic. At work I often work on several projects at once, so to be able to concentrate solely on one will be a luxury! What motivated you to apply? I work in the environmental field and completed my PhD a few years ago. These two things have triggered my interest in environmental research and I have applied every year since I began working for Alcoa (7 years!). This year just happened to be my lucky year! www.earthwatch.org