Gibson Island Community Information
Community Safety Information
Advice for neighbours of Incitec Pivot Gibson Island.
This communication has been prepared by Incitec Pivot Limited to provide information to those who live, work or own property near the company's fertiliser plant at 282 Paringa Road at Gibson Island, Murarrie. It includes information on who we are, what we do, the site hazards and what to do in the unlikely event of a site emergency. If you require further information, please contact us.
Our Gibson Island Works is situated at the end of Paringa Road, Gibson Island, between the Brisbane River and Aquarium Passage in the suburb of Murarrie. The site covers approximately 57 hectares which is mostly reclaimed land consisting of material dredged from the Brisbane River prior to the site's construction in the 1960s.
The Gibson Island Works has been operating since 1969 and primarily manufactures nitrogen based fertiliser products. These products include ammonia, urea, ammonium sulphate and carbon dioxide using natural gas as the principal site feedstock. The site is a significant employer with more than 400 staff during normal operations. This can increase to up to 800 during peak maintenance periods.
Our health, safety and environmental standards are designed to ensure that the operation of our facilities causes 'Zero Harm to Everyone, Everywhere' and demonstrates 'Care for the Community and our Environment'.
Our Safety Framework
All IPL sites operate under a strict framework of federal, state and local government safety and environmental regulations. The company has procedures and controls in place to meet or exceed all regulatory requirements. At Gibson Island, Incitec Pivot Fertilisers operates according to a prescribed Safety Management System which is designed to meet the requirements of OH & S legislation. In our workplace at Gibson Island we have rigid health, safety and environment policies directed at ensuring every one of our people on site returns home safely every day. Many of these people, like you also live in the bayside area and, with their families, are part of the local community.
Green Ammonia Project
In 2023, IPL is currently progressing a project to transition to the manufacture of Green Ammonia – see project page for details.
Emergency Response
The site has robust plans ready to be put into action to manage a range of possible emergencies, including a chemical release, fire or explosion. Our emergency plans have been developed in conjunction with the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service, the Queensland Police Service and the Queensland Ambulance Service. In addition to working closely with these external emergency services, the site has its own well-trained emergency response teams.
Once activated, the detailed site emergency plans will guide IPL's immediate response to any incident, which may include advising neighbours if necessary. Minimising the potential for impact in the community is a key part of the plans, which will cover potential incidents including fire, explosion, ammonia liquid or gas release, chemical spill or leak, bomb threat and natural disaster. In an extreme circumstance, the site and possibly the surrounding area may be evacuated.
If you live near Gibson Island, you may hear us testing our emergency warning (it makes a 'hee haw' sound) every Friday at midday.
Contacting relevant authorities in the event of an incident
In the event of an environmental incident that causes material environmental harm, the Incitec Pivot Gibson Island HSE representative and Emergency Manager will:
- Collect the initial basic information of the incident for reporting purposes; and
- Immediately contact the following authorities as required by the Protection of the Queensland Environmental Protection Act 1994. The time that each of the authorities were notified will be recorded and included on the incident report.