The continued disruptions caused by Southern Rocycling and the ill effects for residents has been raised in Parliament by Peter Lockwood, Member for Bayswater:
Mr LOCKWOOD (Bayswater) — I grieve this morning for residents who live in and around Heatherdale Road in Ringwood and Mitcham and their ongoing dispute with a local company, Southern Rocycling. The residents have formed the Heatherdale Road action group, ably led by Elwynne Kift and Dennis Burley. Southern Rocycling is a metal recycling company.
The nature of the dispute relates to noise and dust; what the residents call an horrendous barrage of noise and dust at all hours of the day and night. This has been going on for quite a few months, in fact the best part of a year. The residents are getting quite good support now from the local councils of Whitehorse and Maroondah, and their newly elected City of Maroondah councillor, Alex Makin, has taken the issue on board and is fighting hard for his local residents.
The residents see this as environmental vandalism. They have no problem with the business being in their area, but they do not want the endless noise and dust problems that seem to accompany the processing. They do not see why the business cannot operate within reasonable hours and let them get their sleep at night.
It becomes quite an issue when people cannot sleep night after night; so much so that they get out on their own in the wee hours of the morning taking photographs of the actions of the company in order to provoke authorities into doing something. Maroondah council is the appropriate authority in this case. Given that it is in an industrial zone, the activities of the company are quite okay; it is just the hours and the fact that the residential amenity needs to be protected.