Max Hatzoglou
Paint manufacturer AkzoNobel hosted its sixth community forum late last month to inform the community about how its addressing its issue of odour and noise from its factory.
AkzoNobel revealed that routine volatile organic compound (VOC) monitoring by air quality consultants, Golder, continues to show levels well below Environment Protection Authority (EPA) standards.
The information revealed odour had still been detected during odour monitoring around the site, albeit with less frequency and intensity.
The paint manufacturer in Sunshine North said the installation last year of a regenerative thermal oxidiser (RTO) on the resin plant has been effective in reducing the most significant odour from the plant.
Eight community members attended the face-to-face forum.
AkzoNobel Pacific and South Korea hub manager Peter Black said it was good to be able to tell the community that good progress was being made on the issues.
“This was our first opportunity since COVID hit to host a face-to-face meeting with residents and we’re grateful to those who attended,” Mr Black said.
“It was a constructive conversation. We were able to provide updates on our progress in addressing odours and noise, to explain some of the solutions we have implemented and others we’re exploring.
“We’ve made some good progress on these issues but there’s more to be done. We value dialogue with the community, as the input of residents has helped us understand the impacts of our operations, and how we can minimise them.
“Ultimately we want to be a good neighbour. We’ll continue working on these issues and welcome the community’s input.”
AkzoNobel also highlighted that EPA’s records of complaints also suggests odours have reduced, and are more concentrated around the plant’s boundaries.
AkzoNobel had also introduced an online form to allow residents to easily report odour or noise concerns; using the ‘Report a Complaint’ form on AkzoNobel’s community webpage.
Details: bit.ly/3x7gv2K
