Item No. Business Action Date

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1 meeting notes prepared by meeting subject location date and time of meeting attendees distribution James Page Elf Farm Supplies (EFS) Community Liaison Committee (CLC) Hawkesbury Central Library 17 February, 6pm to 8pm (meeting commenced 6.15pm) Chair - Nicola Wass Members present David Tolson, Trevor Wilson, Michael Hardman, Jennifer Hawken, Terry Schulz, Trevor Crunkhorn, Stephen Bonanno, Danielle Wheeler, Kim Smith, Bret Cansfield, Bill Sneddon, Lyn Creamer Guest speaker Anthony Pizzolato, Department of Planning and Environment Notes James Page Apologies - Damien Rose, Emmanuel Isbester, Brenda McDonough, Will Litjens, All CLC members Welcome and apologies 1 Nicola Wass welcomed CLC members. Nicola apologised for the late meeting start and last minute change of venue. Nicola made a specific mention of the guest speaker Anthony Pizzolato (Compliance team, Department of Planning and Environment) and welcomed the new industry representative, Michael Hardman. Nicola explained that Michael had been given copies of the CLC terms of reference and code of conduct Nicola gave the meeting apologies So that Michael understood who else was on the CLC, Nicola invited all of those present to introduce themselves to Michael and their role on the CLC, before inviting Michael to say a few words Michael explained that he was born in Windsor and still lives in the area. He mentioned that he has worked on a mushroom farm for the last 20 years; he indicated that he would be honest and speak from the heart 1

2 Review of previous meeting notes 2 Previous meeting notes were accepted and published on the CLC website. Nicola summarised progress against actions including: Following up community members who had not been attending Amending the meeting notes slightly to reflect the conversation about odour chemical compositions Sharing information with the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) to be discussed at the meeting The continuation of CLC meetings after the two year term to be discussed at the meeting Recruiting a new industry representative The inability to discuss the waste discharge investigation until the outcome has been confirmed Bringing a folder of relevant information to the meetings One outstanding actions from previous meeting: 1 ST to provide members a copy of the complaints line advertisement to send to their networks Media protocols and abusive phone calls ST to send complaints line advert 24 February 3a Nicola explained that some of the comments the Windsor High School Principal had made at the November 2015 CLC meeting had been reported in the media without the Principal s consent and that some of the comments were inaccurately reported. Nicola advised that nobody has the right to speak on somebody else s behalf in the media. Nicola advised that, as Chair, she had two concerns: 1. Public sector employees have limitations which determine whether or not they are allowed to speak to the media. The Principal is not able to speak to the media; the comments could have had serious repercussions for her 2. CLC members might share their views less freely if they are concerned they may be quoted in the media. CLC members need to feel safe to share contrary views in a respectful environment for the CLC to function well. 2

3 Item No. Business Action Date Nicola explained that the code of conduct says that CLC members cannot speak on behalf of the CLC and that she interpreted this to mean that CLC members may not speak to the media on behalf of other CLC members A discussion was had about whether the code of conduct needed strengthening in this regard: It was agreed that the code of conduct was sufficient It was discussed that the Principal s comments had been misrepresented and this had not been a positive experience for her It was agreed that the comments made by individual CLC members should not be reported to the media, without their permission No CLC members said they had provided comments to the media. It was suggested that comments may have been provided to the media third or fourth hand. The Stop the Stink representative and the South Windsor representative stated they had not spoken to the media. In later discussions, the HEN representative confirmed she had not spoken to the media although she has been approached by the media on three separate occasions to do so It was agreed that one of the purposes of the CLC was for its members to report back information to their networks, rather than to share specific comments made by individual CLC members. Note: The Stop the Stink representative left the meeting during this discussion. CLC members are not to mention specific names or comments when speaking to their networks or the media. Ongoing as identified in the code of conduct 3b Nicola explained that abusive calls have been made to EFS, and its employees and consultants. She explained that she wanted to raise this with the CLC so they are able to discuss this issue with their networks in attempt to stop the abusive calls. The Odour Unit s representative expressed his frustration at receiving these calls and Nicola confirmed that ST had also been called. During the discussion the following matters were raised: CLC members to talk to their networks to request abusive phone calls to stop. February EFS s consultants were receiving threats to them and their employees, which is highly disrespectful Some members said they had seen a reduction in the number of 3

4 Item No. Business Action Date EFS related smells CLC membership One member explained that they had spoken to someone working in the mushroom industry who expressed concerned that they would lose their job if EFS closed down EFS reiterated its commitment to undertaking mitigation works to reduce emissions, subject to the approval of the pending development application. 4 Nicola explained that she wanted to discuss the CLC membership arrangements given there had been no change to the status of the development application (DA) for the mitigation works. She noted that the EPA licence required the CLC to commence by 6 th December 2014 and remain current until 6 th December. Nicola explained that officers at DPE had made a recommendation on the DA for mitigation works to the Minister, who is yet to determine the outcome. She explained that the Department of Planning and Environment s recommendations contain certain conditions which outline the requirement for community engagement, as part of the consent, if approved. With this in mind, Nicola suggested that the decision about when or how the CLC should continue after 6 December should deferred until the next meeting. During the discussion the following matters were raised: The original CLC terms were chosen by the EPA because they thought the mitigation works would be in place by December It was agreed that the CLC has provided an important avenue for communication about the progress of the DA It was agreed that the CLC will continue to provide a useful method for discussing the impact of the mitigation works as they progress, subject to the conditions attached to a possible consent Whilst CLC members are frustrated that a decision is yet to be made some CLC members suggested that the delay is a result of a thorough decision making process, which is preferable to a quick decision Discuss CLC membership 18 th May 4

5 Item No. Business Action Date It is easier for community members with a scientific background to identify the different odour types in the area. The majority of community members are uncertain whether the odours they smell are a result of EFS operations or those of others. Some members said that other smells would be more dominant when EFS odour emissions have reduced The majority of the community is unaware of EFS intention to undertake the works because the DA is not well advertised or communicated. Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) and its compliance responsibilities 5 Anthony, from the DPE, gave a presentation on the DPE s compliance responsibilities under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. In doing this, he explained that DPE were responsible for overseeing compliance with all conditions of consents associated with a DA, whilst the EPA provide expert advice on environmental related conditions, such as odour and noise issues Anthony provided the contact details for DPE s compliance team Compliance@planning.nsw.gov.au Telephone: N.B: Telephone number was provided to Straight Talk the following day after the CLC meeting. Following the presentation the following matters were discussed: The length of time it takes for DPE/EPA to assess the various plans or documents required by a condition of consent. EPA explained that it would be dependent on the individual condition and that, if the EPA is required to further assess information, they are given a date by which they need to respond It is not uncommon for a decision to take more than a year for mitigation works of this scale The process of determination is a transparent process the development application documents and determination are posted online 5

6 Update on Elf Farms Supplies mitigation works 6 EFS advised that, if they receive approval, they will need to review the associated conditions of consent to determine what work is required to happen before construction can commence. This might include the provision of updated construction plans and/or other environmental plans. Once these conditions are met, EFS will then apply for a construction certificate and once received EFS can commence construction. It is likely that construction will take 18 months, subject to other conditions of consent Following the update from EFS a number of matters were discussed: The first round of works will include the construction of tunnels, within which EFS will undertaking the wetting. It was suggested that this information should be communicated to the wider community so they do not think the tunnels are part of an expansion of EFS production Frequent and transparent community updates about the works before, during and after the construction commences will be essential to ensure the community are well informed and reduce misinformation and community concern EFS representative suggested that he present the site plan and information on the first stage of works at the next CLC meeting. It was agreed by the CLC that this would be useful EFS will discuss the potential of a site visit once the DA has been approved and construction timeframes are known The community has the right to continue to complain about odour from the site once the mitigation works commence Quarterly complaints register EFS to bring a site plan and information on the first stage of works to the next CLC meeting EFS to agree a timescale for the site visit 18 May Once DA approved 7 Nicola noted that nine complaints had been made to the complaints line since the previous meeting and that there was still an insufficient number of complaints for detailed trend analysis to be undertaken. The profile of complaints was similar to that reported in previous meetings a third of complaints were likely, a third were possible and a third were unlikely. Nicola reiterated that the complaints line 6

7 Item No. Business Action Date had been set-up for one purpose (to allow EFS to investigate complaints as they are made) and the CLC were attempting to use the complaints line for a different purpose (identify trends in complaints) Following the update a number of issues were discussed: The difficulty spotting trends in the data due to the small number of complaints received The requirement for the complaints line under the current operations conditions of consent Whether the limited number of complaints was a result of the poor advertising of the complaints line number, community apathy in relation to the issue and/or the scale of the issue The lack of independence of the complaints line, which is funded by EFS. Some CLC members felt data is not valid The frustration that complainants feel when they are told a smell is unlikely odour when they have taken the time to raise the issue *One CLC member questioned the validity of some of the complaints, suggesting that some complaints are orchestrated or spurious a suggestion which was strenuously rebutted by the HEN representative The extent of the issue: whilst some CLC members said they were happy with the current situation (odour levels), others mentioned that they could still smell odour for up to two hours a day and this was not acceptable for sensitive receptors, such as Windsor High School That some members of the community take notes of what is discussed so they can report it back to their networks. Nicola reiterated that whilst some CLC members were frustrated by the lack of a decision about the development application and CLC members have a range of different views they should remain respectful at all times so that participants continue to share their views openly [*Member subsequently advised that these comments were not related to complaints made about EFS but reflected experience at other facilities where odour issues have been resolved but complaints continue] ST to continue to collect complaints data Ongoing 7

8 Community issues and concerns 8 No community issues were raised Other business 9 The Odour Unit representative, the odour specialist, requested that he no longer be on the CLC because he felt his role was complete. Some CLC members said they felt it was important that he remain on the CLC because he would play a valuable role once the mitigation works commence Nicola suggested that she raise the question of his membership in a post-meeting discussion Next meeting and close ST to ask CLC members to provide comments on whether the odour specialist should remain on the CLC CLC members to their response to Nicola 24 February 9 March 10 Next meeting Wednesday 18 May at Windsor High School Draft notes will be available for review by 24 February Notes to be finalised and posted online once feedback received Draft meeting notes distributed CLC to provide comments 24 February 2 March 8