HazMAG History

Hazmag is a not-for-profit community based and run environment group campaigning primarily on the issue of hazardous chemicals, their manafacture, storeage, use and transport. HazMAG and is run by volunteers and has no paid workers. It is an unfunded group which survives financially through donations, grants and paid consultancies. Based in Melbourne's inner west, Hazmag is mainly focused on environmental issues in this region, home to around 60% of Australia's chemical industries. Despite being best known for its campaign to relocate the Coode Island Chemical Storeage Facility. Hazmag has been involved in many varied campaigns in its ten year history. The Hazardous Materials Action Group was formed in 1988 by three local residents: Colleen Hartland, Paul Adams and Pauline Williams in response to the United Transport fire. During and following the fire the EPA and other government bodies told the local community not to be alarmed by the fire as everything was safe. It is not an exaggeration to say that HazMAG was formed in response to these lies and what HazMAG saw as a need for local communities to have access to the truth about incidents such as these. HazMAG is probably best known for its campaign to have the Coode Island Chemical Storeage Facility relocated, a campaign begun some two years before the 1991 fires. At the time HazMAG was labelled as 'alarmist' and accused of scare mongering. Time proved HazMAG's concerns to be well founded and reluctantly HazMAG began to earn respect from its adversaries. Apart from its best known campaign work around Coode island, HazMAG has been involved in, and has run, numerous campaigns in Melbourne's West. Some of these campaigns include: • Coode Island Relocation • United Transport Fire • Butlers Transport Fire • East Coast Armanents Complex • Braybrook Housing Estate Redevelopment • Holden Oil Dock Expansion • Pollution Watch Campaign • Chemical Reaction film and video with West Theatre • Youth Theatre production"Effluent Society " with Footscray Community Arts Centre • Webb Dock Expansion • Various toxic land fill and contamination campaigns • NPI - National Pollutant Inventory • No Benzene at Spotswood