Noosa Plan Submission 17 December 2015 - Final submission table

64.   When both of these conditions have been satisfied, a precautionary measure should
      be taken.

65.   The scientific studies show that petrol and/or traffic emissions associated with the
      proposed service station will present a serious threat of harm to GSLC students,
      families and staff along with the public users of the GSLC facilities and irrespective of
      the proposed service station’s alleged compliance with any applicable industry or
      Australian standard regarding these emissions, Noosa Council should apply the
      precautionary principle to abate that threat and reject the DA.

            Health conclusions

66.   Despite the applicant’s assertions that it has incorporated best practice into its service
      station design by implementing a VR1 and Vr2 recovery system to eliminate benzene
      and other harmful emissions from adversely affecting the health of GSLC students and
      other users of GSLC, this assertion FAILS to take into account:


      (a)     Adverse health impacts that will occur from traffic emissions as a result of the
              increased traffic using the service station in close proximity to GSLC, 24 hours a
              day, 7 days a week.
      (b)     The fact that a 2010 Spanish study in a reputable peer review journal showed
              that benzene levels are harmful up to a radius of 50m. Here the distance
              between the fuel dispensers and the GSLC toddler pool and the HPE Centre are
              30 metres and 40 metres respectively.
      (c)     The fact that the GSLC pool is an OPEN AIR facility. There is no sufficient buffer
              to absorb the harmful air emissions, particularly when the wind is coming from
              the west or south west.
      (d)     That the WA EPA recommends a separation distance of 200 meters between a
              service station operating 24 hours a day and a sensitive land use, which includes
              a school.
      (e)     Noosa temperatures are usually high and therefore the warmer conditions will
              increase the amount of vapour release from the service station and emissions
              from traffic.

67.   Furthermore, the proposed development does not comply with the Noosa Plan as it
      fails to:

      (a)     maintain the safety of people, in particular children;
      (b)     protect the GSLC;
      (c)     avoid significant adverse changes to the air quality and noise enjoyed by users of
              associated, adjoining or nearby uses;
      (d)     prevent an environmental nuisance to neighbouring properties; and/or
      (e)     locate a service station on a site that does not cause an environmental nuisance
              to neighbouring properties.


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