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Speaker 1: Joining me on the line right now is pediatrician doctor

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Speaker 1: Louise Woodwood. Good morning to you, doctor, Hi Katie, thanks

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Speaker 1: so much, Yeah, thanks so much for your time this

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Speaker 1: morning now, Louise. Public hearings for the Middle Arm Senate inquiry.

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Speaker 1: They're going to be held in Darwin today and tomorrow.

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Speaker 1: What are you hoping comes to light from those hearings.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, so we're really hoping that the health impacts of

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Speaker 2: these industries are discussed and interrogated. There's really not been

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Speaker 2: any discussion about the health impacts of the gas industry

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Speaker 2: to the people of Darwin. We've had this industry in

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Speaker 2: our city for over ten years now and there's really

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Speaker 2: never been any discussion about some of the significantly serious

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Speaker 2: health impacts from the air pollution as a result of

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Speaker 2: the industry.

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Speaker 1: What are the concerns from doctors and nurses who met yesterday?

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Speaker 1: What are they saying?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, our main concern relates to the chemicals and pollutants

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Speaker 2: released during the processing of the gas and the fact

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Speaker 2: that these gas plants are right in the heart of

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Speaker 2: our city, in Darle and Harbor, and they plan to

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Speaker 2: expand this industry at Middle Arm. Some of the health

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Speaker 2: impacts that we're worried about are things like increased rates

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Speaker 2: of asthma and severity of asthma on a pediatrician of

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Speaker 2: particular concern for children. There's also an increased risk of

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Speaker 2: pregnancy complications like stilbirth, low birth rate, and prematurity, and

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Speaker 2: we have some of the highest rates of those conditions

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Speaker 2: in the country. And it can also make many chronic

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Speaker 2: diseases much worse, so much more difficult to control, like

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Speaker 2: heart disease, like diabetes, kidney disease, and we also have

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Speaker 2: high rates of those. So having an environmental pollution in

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Speaker 2: the air that makes all of those things worse just

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Speaker 2: puts additional strain on our health system.

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Speaker 1: And doctor, what is there evidence of an increase in

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Speaker 1: those different conditions in other parts of the world where

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Speaker 1: they may have sort of similar industry.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, so there's a lot of really robust research coming

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Speaker 2: out of the United States. In the United States have

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Speaker 2: got a very mature gas industry that's been operating for

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Speaker 2: longer than in Australia, and it's very concentrated in population centers.

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Speaker 2: So there's some really you know, really serious health impacts

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Speaker 2: seen in large groups of people from both gas processing

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Speaker 2: and petrochemical plants. And I guess one of the other

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Speaker 2: things that we are really concerned about is, you know,

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Speaker 2: on the Middle Arm website, it lists a whole lot

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Speaker 2: of petrochemicals, including methanol and ethylene that they plan to

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Speaker 2: produce at Middle Arm. These are petrochemicals, and there's some

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Speaker 2: really strong research from the United States which shows and

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Speaker 2: increased risk in leukemia and other cancers for residents living

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Speaker 2: close to these facilities. And this is really really concerning,

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Speaker 2: particularly for a population that is going to live right

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Speaker 2: around this. It's right in between Palmersten and Darwin, and

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Speaker 2: we can't afford to have any increased risk of any

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Speaker 2: health condition, let alone leukemia and other cancers where we

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Speaker 2: can't treat pediatric leukemia in Dawa and we have to

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Speaker 2: send those kids into state.

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Speaker 1: Doctor Woodwood, I understand the concerns. I mean, I've got

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Speaker 1: kids myself. I guess on the other side of it,

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Speaker 1: I grew up in Mount Isa in a place where

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Speaker 1: there was a lead smelter and there was a lot

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Speaker 1: of mining that went on and you know a lot

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Speaker 1: of jobs, a lot of industry as a result of

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Speaker 1: that mining. So there is going to be people listening

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Speaker 1: this morning as well. Well, who are concerned that we're

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Speaker 1: going to lose jobs, We're going to lose a boost

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Speaker 1: to economy if we don't have this project go ahead.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, and absolutely those concerns are really valid. But I

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Speaker 2: think as a community we need to we really need

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Speaker 2: to interrogate what kind of jobs we want in our community,

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Speaker 2: what kind of industries we want in our community, and

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Speaker 2: what we need. There's actually very huge jobs in the

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Speaker 2: gas industry, most of it's automators. The jobs tend to

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Speaker 2: be in the construction phase. We saw that with Impacts

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Speaker 2: and then they all disappear. We would like, you know,

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Speaker 2: in terms of building the economy with jobs. You know,

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Speaker 2: industries like the health sector, education, housing, they're all they

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Speaker 2: all employ much greater numbers of people with sustainable jobs

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Speaker 2: that tend to be local as well. So that's a

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Speaker 2: way to grow our economy sustainably and also to support

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Speaker 2: our health system, to support our kids getting an education,

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Speaker 2: being job ready, for having the skills to get them

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Speaker 2: a job. And there's a big problem with unemployment here

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Speaker 2: and kids not having anything to do, and so I

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Speaker 2: think that we need to really interrogate what kind of

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Speaker 2: jobs we want in our town.

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Speaker 1: Doctor w Wood, are you going to be Are you

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Speaker 1: going to be presenting today at that Senate inquiry or

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Speaker 1: are you going to be speaking there.

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Speaker 2: I will be speaking at the inquiry in a panel

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Speaker 2: of health experts that will be tomorrow at one o'clock.

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Speaker 1: I think, well, I'll be interested to see exactly what

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Speaker 1: has heard over the coming days. I really appreciate you

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Speaker 1: having a chat with us this morning, and look, I

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Speaker 1: think it's important to hear from both sides, so I

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Speaker 1: do really appreciate you speaking to us today.

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Speaker 2: Thanks so much, Katie.

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Speaker 1: Thank you