31/01/2005 - NSW industry
facilities are responding to the challenges
of pollution by increasingly reporting on
their emissions, the Australian Minister for
the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian
Campbell, said today.
Releasing the 2004 National Pollutant Inventory
(NPI) website, Senator Campbell said the number
of NSW facilities reporting had risen steadily
since the NPI was first established six years
ago.
"It is heartening to see that 748 NSW
facilities are now reporting - 20 more than
the previous year," he said.
"This shows that industries are taking
their responsibility to report emissions to
the public seriously.
"Making this information publicly available
is important to help minimise pollution. Having
more industries reporting gives us a much
clearer picture of the range and extent of
pollution and helps industries to address
problems in their facilities."
The NPI programme involves the Australian,
State and Territory governments to assist
industries to reduce emissions by providing
valuable benchmarking data on emissions of
90 different substances.
"Members of the public can use the online
NPI to compare emissions from individual facilities,
industrial sectors, and from regions,"
Senator Campbell said. "The States and
Territories can use the NPI to monitor achievements
by industry in meeting environmental targets."
The Minister said the NPI data must be analysed
in context, for example a large amount of
one substance may be potentially less damaging
than a small amount of another substance.
It was also misleading to add amounts of different
substances together.
Senator Campbell praised industries taking
the lead in emission reduction and said companies
implementing cleaner production techniques
and installing pollution control equipment
are playing a key role in reducing pollution.
"In 2004 nearly half of the substances
listed on the NPI had decreased emissions
compared to the last reporting year, and for
the second year in a row there has been a
welcome decrease in emissions of potentially
harmful substances such as lead and toluene,"
Senator Campbell said.
"This is particularly pleasing at a
time when solid economic growth reflects higher
activity across many sectors. This shows it
is possible to achieve strong economic growth
with a smaller economic impact."
Emissions of air pollutants such as carbon
monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and sulfur dioxide,
have remained similar to last year. Motor
vehicles continue to be the chief source of
pollutant emissions.
"I urge industry and individuals to
visit this informative web-site to help understand
pollution issues in their local areas and
Australia-wide. As well as providing a benchmarking
tool for industry to formulate pollution reduction
targets, I hope people will use the information
to look at reducing emissions on a local level,
for example reducing dependence on cars and
installing energy efficient appliances at
home."
