More than 50 Scenic Rim residents filled the Kooralbyn Community Hall on Sunday 12 July for our community forum in response to Cleanaway's proposed Bromelton Energy and Resource Centre (BERC).
The forum was the third of five scheduled community information sessions. It drew residents from across the Scenic Rim and beyond, reflecting growing community concern about a proposal that would see 760,000 tonnes of waste per year processed in the heart of Queensland's primary food production corridor.
Further forums will be held at Tamborine Mountain and Beaudesert.
An honest conversation based on evidence
The panel, comprising Erica Bates, Julie Jackson, Lizz Hills, and Dr Andy Grodecki was praised by attendees for the quality and integrity of their presentations.
"This was great information," one community member said afterwards. "We really appreciate an honest approach based on evidence and peer-reviewed research from a community that genuinely cares."
Panel members were complemented on both the substance of their speeches and their commitment to volunteering their time and expertise in the public interest.
The scale of the proposal and its reach beyond the Scenic Rim
A key theme of the afternoon was the sheer scale of the BERC and what it means not only for the Scenic Rim but for neighbouring communities including Ipswich.
BERC would process 760,000 tonnes of waste per year, more than 25 times the Scenic Rim's own annual waste generation of approximately 29,449 tonnes. The overwhelming majority of that waste would originate from metropolitan South East Queensland, and will require an additional 472 vehicle movements per day, with much of the additional traffic travelling along Mount Lindsay Highway carrying waste to and from the facility.
Significantly, the forum heard that Cleanaway confirmed at their own community information session in May that the hazardous ash produced by BERC, the toxic residue from burning 760,000 tonnes of waste, is destined for Ipswich, at the Ti Tree or Swanbank landfill. Ipswich residents have lodged more than 25,000 complaints about odour from Cleanaway's existing Swanbank facility since 2018. Lung cancer rates in suburbs surrounding the Swanbank site are up to 48% higher than the Australian average according to the Australian Cancer Atlas.
"This is not only a Scenic Rim issue," said Erica Bates. "The ash from burning our region's air goes to Ipswich. The trucks use our roads. The forever chemicals settle on our farms. And the profits go to Cleanaway. Our community carries the consequences and someone else takes the benefit."
Economic impacts: 50 jobs versus 4,000
The forum heard detailed evidence on the economic consequences of BERC for the Scenic Rim's agri-tourism and food production economy.
Agriculture and tourism in the Scenic Rim contribute more than $400 million annually to the local economy and employ more than 4,000 locals, according to the Scenic Rim Regional Council's own Agribusiness and Agritourism 10-Year Roadmap 2022–2032. Australian agritourism demand is projected to reach $18.6 billion by 2030.
Cleanaway's proposal offers approximately 50 operational jobs
"The Scenic Rim's economy is built entirely on trust - the trust of consumers and visitors that our air is clean, our soil is healthy, and our food is safe," said Lizz Hills. "Dioxins and PFAS accumulate in beef, dairy, and eggs. They settle in soil and stay for decades. You cannot unfarm a contaminated paddock. We are being asked to trade a proven, growing, 4,000-person economy for 50 positions and a company's profit margin. That is not a good deal."
Questions from the floor: what about alternatives?
One of the most significant questions raised from the floor concerned alternatives to incineration. The panel's response was clear: the solutions exist, but have not yet been implemented at the scale required.
Australia's national Circular Economy Framework sets ambitious targets for reducing waste and increasing resource recovery. National mandates support composting, resource recovery, extended producer responsibility, and circular economy infrastructure. However, these frameworks have not yet translated into adequate state-level investment or policy leaving a gap that proposals like BERC seek to fill with incineration.
"The answer to waste is not to burn it," said Dr Andy Grodecki. "It is to stop generating it, to recover what can be recovered, and to invest in the infrastructure that makes that possible. The national policy direction is clear. The problem is it has not yet reached state level in a meaningful way. That is what needs to change."
What happens next
The campaign's formal intervention point is the Environmental Authority (EA) application, which Cleanaway must lodge with the Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI). Because there is no standard Environmentally Relevant Activity category for a facility of this type, the application will trigger a mandatory public notification period during which every community member has a legal right to lodge a formal submission.
Keep the Scenic Rim Scenic has engaged the Environmental Defenders Office Queensland for support navigating the submission process.
The community is urged to sign the petition and attend one of the upcoming forums. Come early for refreshments.
MOUNT TAMBORINE COMMUNITY FORUM
📍 Saturday 18 July 2pm
Vonda Youngman Centre, Mount Tamborine
Beaudesert Community Forum
📍 Saturday 25 July 2pm
CWA Hall 1 Selwyn Street West, Beaudesert
