Albany council refuses to extend Nullaki lime pit operating window and remove transport restrictions
Councillors voted on Tuesday to refuse an amendment to the pit, located at Lot 9005 Eden Road in Nullaki, that would see its operational window extended from four months a year to 12 months a year.
Proponent Graeme Robertson and Great Southern Lime also requested the removal of restrictions of 50,000 tonnes per year to be transported off the site, and no more than 84 vehicles a week or 20 vehicles a day.
The original extractive industry was granted approval — subject to 45 conditions — by the State Administrative Tribunal in 2019 after the City of Albany refused it.
Primary concerns expressed by councillors and the majority of submissions made during the public comment period included public safety, noise disturbance, environmental concerns and a current lack of compliance.
Of the 105 submissions made, only five supported the extension, with the majority citing dicey near misses they had seen or experienced themselves with the trucks that utilise the same narrow, convoluted roads as local residents and the school bus.
Deputy mayor Paul Terry acknowledged the demand for lime but noted that conditions were put on the original approval for 'very good reasons' and that many trucks did not obey the 40km/h speed limit of the road.
'In the report, it talks about, I think it's 133 of those truck movements out of 140 or so were over the 40km/h (speed limit),' he said.
'In fact, over 50 per cent of trucks that were going through there were over 50km/h.
'Now that has a significant safety impact on the residents that go there.'
The pit occupies an 8ha area of the 437ha lot and is zoned as environmental conservation land.
Three members of the public spoke in favour of the extension and pointed to the necessity of lime for farmers in regulating the pH of their soil and the cost of trucking it in from further distances.
Cr Craig McKinley spoke against the motion of refusal, comparing the regulations to the Federal live sheep export ban in its effect on farmers and urged the council not to add more restrictions to the agricultural industry.
'We should be encouraging business,' he said.
'(Regarding the) transport speeding, well, I used the analogy at the committee meeting that they can't control the speeding.
'It's up to the WA Police to control and regulate the speeding trucks, it's not up to the business.'
The motion to refuse the amendment was carried 7-3, with Crs McKinley, Thomas Brough and Mario Lionetti voting against.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
11 hours ago
- ABC News
WA Police family and domestic violence figures show 'alarming' increase
Reports of family and domestic violence have reached a staggering high in Western Australia, with more offences recorded than any other year in the past decade and the premier conceding it is cause for alarm. Despite that, the government is not committing to changing course on its FDV prevention strategy nor providing more funding. New WA Police crime statistics reveal there were more than 42,000 total offences involving assault or threatening behaviour committed in domestic and family situations, in 2024-25 — an 18 per cent increase on the previous year. Advocates are concerned the number is even greater, given the high percentage rate of unreported cases. "I have a special advisory group who specifically inform me who are industry experts in family and domestic violence and survivors themselves who tell me … up to 70 per cent of women are still not reporting to police for various reasons," WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said. "I think that's the number we should care about." The statistics show back in 2015-16, there were 24,250 reports of family and domestic violence offences. While data prior to 2012 is not publicly available, reported FDV offences have increased almost every year since and the 2024-25 tally represents a 75 per cent increase from 10 years ago. WA's population also grew by about 500,000 people in that time, hitting the 3 million mark at the end of last year. The government said it believed the uptick in reports were a result of more community awareness of family and domestic violence. "Today's figures are alarming, but they're also a sign of increasing awareness in the community," WA Premier Roger Cook said. "We're seeing more of the iceberg today than we have ever seen because we have that extra level of awareness and higher levels of reporting." The premier said extra resources for frontline services can "always be deployed in this area" to address the problem, but stopped short of committing further funding — particularly long-term primary prevention funding. "We [will] continue to be guided by the advocates and the experts and people with lived experience when it comes to family and domestic violence, it's one of the reasons why you've seen an uplift of over half a billion dollars in extra funding since we came into government in 2017." Police Minister Reece Whitby is adamant the government can keep on with what it's doing to address the problem. "We continue to do what we're doing, we continue to look at new opportunities to improve the situation ... this is not the end of the journey." Centre for Women's Safety and Wellbeing Alison Evans re-issued calls this week for an "immediate significant funding uplift in frontline areas" following the coroner's findings in relation to 51-year-old Lynn Cannon's murder. The 51-year-old was stabbed to death nearly three years ago, after her former husband learned she had a new partner and "reacted aggressively". Acting State Coroner Sarah Linton found police had been too slow to act on information provided by Lynn's family, but acknowledged a range of systemic pressures working against them.
The Age
2 days ago
- The Age
WA news LIVE: Man pulled from burning house in Mirrabooka
Latest posts Latest posts 9.41am Police pull man from burning house in Mirrabooka A man in his 60s has been pulled from his burning house in Mirrabooka after emergency services were called to the blaze in the early hours of Thursday. Police and firefighters rushed to the scene at Otago Mews about 1am this morning, with several police being the first to arrive. They soon learned a person was still inside the home, and smashed a window to get inside. 'The officers were able to find the man inside the burning home and extricate him from the premises,' a WA Police spokeswoman said. The man was taken to Fiona Stanley Hospital for treatment of significant smoke inhalation, among other injuries. The officers who saved him also suffered smoke inhalation, and one was also taken to hospital for treatment, the spokeswoman said. Firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze, but the home was badly damaged. 9.41am Across Australia and around the world Here's what's making headlines elsewhere today: White House special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow hours ago, in an almost three-hour meeting that canvassed Donald Trump's threat to intensify sanctions and tariffs on Russia if an urgent move towards a ceasefire with Ukraine wasn't achieved. Trump described the meeting as 'highly productive', noting that 'great progress was made' towards ending Russia's war in Ukraine. A proposal that would see all Australians receive $3300 a year in exchange for accepting a higher and broader GST has been proposed ahead of this month's economic reform roundtable. The plan would lift the GST to 15 per cent and extend the tax on food, education, health and childcare services, and water and sewerage, with proponents arguing it would boost the budget by $28 billion a year and drive up national living standards. , days after the Indian government warned against new trade penalties. The move is designed to penalise India for its purchasing of Russian oil, as Trump continues work to negotiate an end to Russia's war in Ukraine.
Sydney Morning Herald
2 days ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
WA news LIVE: Man pulled from burning house in Mirrabooka
Latest posts Latest posts 9.41am Police pull man from burning house in Mirrabooka A man in his 60s has been pulled from his burning house in Mirrabooka after emergency services were called to the blaze in the early hours of Thursday. Police and firefighters rushed to the scene at Otago Mews about 1am this morning, with several police being the first to arrive. They soon learned a person was still inside the home, and smashed a window to get inside. 'The officers were able to find the man inside the burning home and extricate him from the premises,' a WA Police spokeswoman said. The man was taken to Fiona Stanley Hospital for treatment of significant smoke inhalation, among other injuries. The officers who saved him also suffered smoke inhalation, and one was also taken to hospital for treatment, the spokeswoman said. Firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze, but the home was badly damaged. 9.41am Across Australia and around the world Here's what's making headlines elsewhere today: White House special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow hours ago, in an almost three-hour meeting that canvassed Donald Trump's threat to intensify sanctions and tariffs on Russia if an urgent move towards a ceasefire with Ukraine wasn't achieved. Trump described the meeting as 'highly productive', noting that 'great progress was made' towards ending Russia's war in Ukraine. A proposal that would see all Australians receive $3300 a year in exchange for accepting a higher and broader GST has been proposed ahead of this month's economic reform roundtable. The plan would lift the GST to 15 per cent and extend the tax on food, education, health and childcare services, and water and sewerage, with proponents arguing it would boost the budget by $28 billion a year and drive up national living standards. , days after the Indian government warned against new trade penalties. The move is designed to penalise India for its purchasing of Russian oil, as Trump continues work to negotiate an end to Russia's war in Ukraine.
