DE-FENDING de fence (plastic contaminates woodchip pile)
The huge Daishowa export woodchip mill at Eden in NSW seems to have had some trouble with plastic and other contaminants getting into their chip pile last year. They of course blame conservationists but it could be the workers lunch wrappers for all we know. When the contaminated chips get to Japan, they can cause major upsets to production, destroying thousands of dollars worth of paper rolls. Quite costly and annoying to the Japanese paper companies. In fact they have threatened to take their business elsewhere.
Daishowa’s insurance company demanded the Eden mill install a mega-mean fence around their pile or they wouldn’t be covered if plastic got in there again.
So, a no-nonsense $330,000 electrified fence of the refugee containment or military installation type appeared. This was illegal as they had not obtained council approval for such a major construction. The electrification was also dangerous to the public and wildlife.
When Vince Phillips, Corporate Affairs Manager of Daishowa, made an address to the council in defence of de fence, we learned the following.
The fence had been made necessary by “protesters going in and sabotaging operations by placing plastic in the woodchip pile”. He said that “just a small amount of plastic could render worthless a whole roll of paper, or more”. The Council approved the fence.
Harriett Swift and Jill