A public meeting held to protest against a hazardous waste dump being built in Tasmania’s south has called for the proposal to be ripped up.
About 200 people attended the meeting at Copping on Friday night.
There were cheers and clapping when resident Dave Melville called on Southern Waste Solutions to scrap its plans to build the waste dump.
“I’m asking them to tear up their permit,” he said.
Another local Shane Humphreys said seismic activity had been recorded in the area in the past.
“Do you think this material will necessarily hold all of that weight under the stress of a significant seismic event?” Mr Humphreys said.
The company’s John Brennan moved to defend the project.
“The wastes can be handled in an up-to-date, engineered, landfill,” Mr Brennan said.
Southern Waste Solutions Chief Executive Christine Bell said her company would defer construction of the project for a month so there could be more community consultation.
“Residents concerns will all be addressed one way or the other,” she said.
“They will all have a reply and if there are concerns raised that bring to light issues that haven’t been previously addressed we will attempt to include them in the permit.”
If the dump goes ahead it will be Tasmania’s first hazardous waste dump.
