Australia's national science agency has raised serious concerns about effluent flowing into Bass Strait from Gunns' proposed $2.2 billion pulp mill in Tasmania's Tamar Valley.
The timber giant released a report prepared by the CSIRO's Dr Mike Herzfeld on Thursday after months of refusing Freedom of Information requests from Australian Greens senator Christine Milne.
The numerical modelling of water movements found effluent dispersion would be in breach of Tasmania's permit conditions on an almost daily basis.
There would be the possibility of high concentrations of effluent to be carried significant distances from the mill.
Earlier this month, Environment Minister Peter Garrett gave the green light for construction of the mill but said the facility wouldn't be permitted to operate unless it mets three outstanding marine impact requirements.
The Gunns board met for the first time yesterday since Mr Garrett's January 5 announcement.
"The board is pleased to announce that the company is now in a very strong position to continue to move forward with the project," Gunns chairman John Gay said in a statement released to the Australian Securities Exchange.
"The board especially considered the issue of future hydrodynamic modelling requirements needed to finalise operational approvals.
"The board believes that the mill will clearly operate within the effluent trigger levels approved by the federal minister."
Dr Herzfeld's report has no bearing on Mr Garrett's assessment of whether Gunns clears the remaining environmental hurdles.
"As the minister made very clear, he is not prepared to grant final approval for the mill's operation until all of the necessary modelling work and scientific studies have been completed, taking into account real seasonal conditions," a spokesman for Mr Garrett told AAP.
Senator Milne said Gunns should not be claiming it will meet the commonwealth guidelines because it has not yet done the hydrodynamic modelling required.
"Nothing changes the fact that Bass Strait off the Tamar is shallow and does not flush for a large part of the year," she said.
"This report is deeply embarrassing for Gunns. Tertiary treatment (of the effluent) will be required, with investors needing to cough up at least another $200 million."
Gunns is yet to announce a financial backer for the project, after ANZ pulled out last year.
The Herzfeld report released by Gunns yesterday is dated December 2007.
A spokesman for the company said the report had since been superseded.
The CSIRO and Independent Expert Group advising Mr Garrett - of which Dr Herzfeld is a member - have since reviewed the trigger levels to match conditions in Bass Strait, he said.
"The data used in the initial report was from the Baltic Sea and was not scientifically appropriate for Bass Strait," the spokesman told AAP.
Email a friend
Favourites
Del.icio.us
Facebook
Digg
StumbleUpon
MySpace
Reddit
Newsvine
LinkedIn
Kwoff
Twitter