By Tobi Nagy
SEA CHANGE Australia's love of coastal living is leading to someserious environmental problems, as more and more Australians arechoosing to build along coastal areas. This is leading to theleaching of acid soils, which is degrading our coastline, marinelife and infra-structure. Australian coastal soils have a highPyrite content and when disturbed through excavation andconstruction is leading to the natural production of sulphuricacid, which is then washed down to the rivers and sea causingheavy environmental damage. What is Pyrite? Pyrite (FeS2) is acommon mineral found in soils around the coast of Australia. Itis brass yellow in colour and has a metallic lustre. Inindustry, Pyrite is used to manufacture sulphuric acid (H2S04),which is widely used in the production of fertilisers, steel,explosives and petrochemicals. In soil Pyrite is relativelybenign, but when disturbed and exposed, it reacts with oxygenand water in the environment to produce sulphuric acid. •Onetonne of pyrite gives 1.6 tonnes of sulphuric acid. How muchPyrite do we have? Australia has some 40,000 sq km of coastlineand CSIRO research has estimated there is one billion tonnes ofpyrite in Australia's coastal soils, potentially leading toserious environmental degradation in the near future as ourcoasts are opened up to more and more development What are theeffects of sulphuric acid on the environment? Sulphuric acid istoxic to aquatic life and organisms and can destroyinfrastructure leading to costly repairs. It is known to: •Killfish; •Release potentially dangerous arsenic and aluminium inshellfish such as oysters, which are later consumed; •Eat awayat concrete bridges, structures and footings; •Eat away at roadstructures and steel structures such as bridge pylons. What arewe doing to fix the problem? •The CSIRO are undertaking studiesto map where the reactive soils occur. They are determining whatare the properties of the soil, then mapping key "hotspots".•Some State Governments are putting planning policies in placeto limit the development of these key sensitive areas. •Wherethe damage has already occurred, state governments arerehabilitating the soils and the environment, which is extremelycostly. Government Policies Victoria, Queensland, NSW and SouthAustralia have government planning policies in place. •The SouthAustralian Government has only put in place limited "fringe"policy and needs to address the issue on a broader scale. •InWest Australia, Northern Territory and Tasmania no such policiesexist. As an island country, it is imperative that theseplanning policies are introduced in key sensitive areas.Rehabilitation Rehabilitation is a large task and already inparts of Cairns and South Australia, small areas are costingmillions of dollars to repair.
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