Communist Party of Australia

Aboriginal leaders and asbestos activists made that call following reports that a New South Wales community – Wallaga Lake – was riddled with the deadly material. Exposure to asbestos when in a deteriorated condition, can cause asbestosis, and lead to cancer.

The latest asbestos scare follows federal government tests last year that confirmed asbestos was present in 62 of 73 communities in the Northern Territory. The material was only removed from three communities where it was deemed high risk and other remote communities remain untested.

NSW Aboriginal Lands Council chairperson Bev Manton said it was time to face up to the problem once and for all.

She said if the federal government was serious about closing the life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, then it must act to confront the issue.

Wallaga Lake Village, the site of the latest contamination scare, is home to about 200 Aboriginal Yuin people. “Wallaga Lake is just the tip of the iceberg. We need a thorough investigation of all Aboriginal communities, especially ones with older style housing,” Ms Manton said.

Asbestos Diseases Foundation president Barry Robson told The Koori Mail newspaper it was highly likely that many more Aboriginal communities would be found to have asbestos.

Mr Robson said asbestos was a cheap building material, which was used extensively in Australia after World War II.

“You didn’t have to be a tradesman to build a house. All you would need was a hammer and nails and you could knock up a cheap house easily,” he said.

“It’s a big issue, not just for Aboriginal communities, but for all communities.”

Mr Robson backed calls for an inquiry, and also research into the effects the deadly product could have on Aboriginal people.

Documented history

Ms Manton agreed, saying there was well-documented history of Aboriginal communities being neglected by governments at all levels. “A lot of our people are unaware of the dangers of asbestos. It’s a matter of not knowing the right words or recognising what’s there,” she said.

“We wonder why our kids get sick and don’t go to school, or our people get sick and can’t hold jobs. We know the history of what effect influenza and other diseases had on our traditional people. Who’s to say asbestos hasn’t also been a factor in our poor health.

“We’re talking about people’s lives here, our future generations.”

Meanwhile, Opposition Indigenous Affairs spokesperson Marise Payne said federal and state government agencies with an interest in Aboriginal affairs should be taking whatever means necessary to protect the health of the Wallaga Lake community.

“I think all government agencies and all agencies that have an involvement in the area need to simply acknowledge that at this stage the most important issue is the protection of the health of the community,” she said.

“(To) do whatever needs to be done, basically whatever it takes, to protect health, clear away the asbestos... and to remediate the situation.

“The last thing we need to see is buck-passing between state and federal governments about what needs to be done in this community.”

Approached Macklin

The Koori Mail contacted the office of Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin, to ask whether she would consider ordering a national audit of Aboriginal communities. At the time of going to print, the Minister’s office had not responded.

Meanwhile, Mr Robson said the asbestos research centre at Concord Hospital, which was named after campaigner Bernie Banton, was considering researching the impact of asbestos on Aboriginal people.

“The head of the centre Professor Nico (van Zandwijk) wants to look at the Aboriginal question as part of research a little further down the track,” he said. “It’s a big issue and any inquiry into the problems of asbestos would be most welcome.”

The Koori Mail

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