Fears of serious health conditions including silicosis, worries about having to leave the area, revelations of abusive encounters and sadness at a holiday tradition stolen without consultation.

They were some of the emotional stories told at an at-times fiery Dorset Council meeting and AGM held at Legerwood on Monday night, with about 50 residents in attendance.

Two major issues have caused contention in the small former tin mining town of Pioneer and the Commissioner has been asked to step in to help those impacted.

One is the proposal for a 10-fold increase in extraction and processing of sand tailings (up to 50,000m3 per annum) at Pioneer Sand Quarry on Crown Land by applicant Sanbar Pty Ltd.

The other is a total ban on camping on the shore of the lake by Parks and Wildlife Service, without any consultation with the families who have recreated there for generations.

PWS has defended the decision, saying it’s never been a designated camp site and has since tried to prevent access with a range of methods. It says local resident complaints about unruly behaviour at the lake is a reason why the clamp down on camping has occurred.

But there is hope a motion put forward by suspended Deputy Mayor Dale Jessup could resolve issues for both residents and visitors.

His motion asking Dorset Council to advocate to set up a group of interested parties regarding Pioneer Lake was carried unanimously at the meeting.

Mr Jessup’s motion would see a group established to provide advice for the management of the area to Council, relevant businesses and government agencies.

It would include as a minimum: Pioneer residents, Council, Parks and Wildlife, lake users, Police, Sanbar Pty Ltd and Scottsdale High School (which manages the Mt Cameron Field Study Centre).

“One of the group aims will be to work through the camping issue with a view to re-permit camping at the lake as has been the case for over 20 years,” the motion read.

Campers say they are respectful and leave the site cleaner than they find it and blame a small percentage of people who have ruined the pastime for everyone.

Resident Lin Simpson spoke to the motion saying she had been victim of abuse hurled at her while standing on her verandah and said she was “fed up with motorboats going until 2-4am on a moon lit night and motorbikes going all night”.

“We want to keep the lake open and we don’t want the mine – it’s poison. Can we all join together and find a happy medium,” she said.

Mr Wardlaw said the motion would be discussed at the next council meeting, scheduled to be held in Scottsdale on Monday December 16, but he would talk to relevant parties before then in a bid to see what could be done before the Christmas period when families normally converge on the area for holidays.

The Pioneer Sand Quarry issue was more complicated as the Council must act as a Planning Authority when dealing with the proposal, located on Crown Land off Racecourse Road, on the southern and eastern shore of the lake.

The application says the quarry has operated since an initial mining lease was granted in 2010 as a Level 1 activity but has been “constrained by a restrictive production capacity limit of up to 1,000 cubic metres” and wants to increase capacity to meet growing demand for sand.

It says there are reserves for approximately 40 years of operation and if operating at full capacity the proposed increase in production will generate six additional trucks a day.

The proposal involves the extraction of tailings stockpiles, a legacy of an historic alluvial tin mine. Sand tailings would be stripped using an excavator, recovered using a wheel-loader and fed into a mechanical screener on site.

The proponent states that the sand tailings have an ideal particle size distribution for use in a variety of applications, including concrete.

A Notice of Intent was lodged on July 13, 2023, with the Environment Protection Authority and Dorset Council has advertised the application for the last two weeks for public submissions.

Residents are furious and met last Tuesday after being made aware of the process.

Ms Simpson submitted a petition to council stating concerns about “the impact of a dry mine with silica dust and a major impact on health, impost of large trucks and dogs (trailers) in and out of the Pioneer township, noise levels increasing and no testing of sand, soil or air”.

One speaker at the meeting said they were being handed a “death sentence” if they are “exposed to the harsh chemicals of silica dust’”.

Alanna Keygan told the meeting she feared for her three children, two of whom have a disability, and worried she would have to leave her home which is 300m away from the site.

Sanbar’s DA says there are 27 residences located within 500 metres of the sand recovery area and seven within 500m of recovery and loading activities.

The proponent says in its application that the potential for dust emissions being generated by the loading operation would be mitigated through the lack of fine particles in the source product.

Commissioner Wardlaw said Dorset Council will assess the project under the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act and it requires a detailed assessment under the Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act.

“Our commitment is to a fair, thorough and objective assessment process that seeks to balance development needs with environmental stewardship,” he said.

“The Council must remain impartial throughout the evaluation of the application’s merits.”

A recommendation is expected to be discussed at the February meeting of council.

Pioneer focus at fiery meeting

November 20, 2024

Fears of serious health conditions including silicosis, worries about having to leave the area, revelations of abusive encounters and sadness at a holiday tradition stolen without consultation.