The Gladstone Ports Corporation is proposing to construct a Greenfield coal terminal to supplement the current coal export capacity of the Port of Gladstone. The terminal is proposed to have a nominal export capacity of 70 million tonnes per annum. Katestone Environmental was engaged to prepare the air quality impact study as a component of the environmental impact statement for the project.

The key air quality issue that is associated with the bulk storage and transport of coal is nuisance dust. Katestone Environmental quantified coal dust emissions from the major activities that are associated with dust emissions from the coal terminal: namely, rail receival, coal conveyors, coal stockpiles, stacking, reclaiming and shiploading. Katestone Environmental also quantified coal dust emissions from other activities in the Gladstone Airshed.

Katestone Environmental conducted a detailed analysis of the ambient air quality monitoring data that has been collected in the Gladstone Airshed by the port and the EPA and identified the key conditions that can lead to higher ambient dust levels.

Katestone Environmental constructed a detailed model of the meteorological conditions within the region and used this to estimate ambient dust levels due to emissions from the coal terminal. A range of dust management, mitigation and control measures were recommended to be implemented to minimise the potential impact of the terminal.

In January 2008, Queensland's Coordinator-General approved the environmental impact statement for the Wiggins Island Coal Terminal. The Coordinator-General specified conditions that must be met by the terminal to the control coal dust emissions.

Dust concentration analysis tool based on non-parametric regression developed by Katestone Environmental to identify the location of a source of dust. This was used within the air quality assessment study of the Wiggins Island Coal Terminal. This plot indicates a source of dust to the east of the monitoring station.