Lauren lives and works on Ngarrindjeri land in West Beach, South Australia. She continues to raise alarming issues about the state of the Housing Trust unit that she and her son moved into on October 2. Lauren began having debilitating health effects, with symptoms such as wheezing, dry-retching, and a burning sensation in her throat. After discussing her concerns with her neighbors, she learned that the property had been previously used for methamphetamine production.
Lauren’s ordeal has forced her to call every government office she can think of, looking for help and guidance. She had asked the state-owned management authority — South Australian Housing Trust (SA Housing Trust) for brief — to provide documentation of the property’s history. When asked, these entities wouldn’t release any information.
Concerns About Contamination
Although Lauren acutely felt the stigma ever since moving into the property, things got worse once her neighbors—from whom she had purchased the property—revealed its sordid history. They disclosed that the residence had formerly been used to manufacture methamphetamine. This triggered concerns regarding possible PFAS contamination.
Lauren reached out to testers at two different firms to do testing in the home. One of the tests reportedly indicated “dangerous levels of meth in the property.” Given these discoveries, Lauren shared her feelings of contempt towards the circumstance, mentioning, “I’m disgusted, what they’ve done. I’m irritated that they feel like that’s acceptable, that the in home – that they feel it’s OK when it’s not.”
The SA Housing Trust said it had uncovered “shocking” conditions on the property. They agreed to clean again “as a goodwill gesture,” according to the authority. Lauren argues that the agency did not disclose any information concerning the prior uses of the property. Shockingly insufficient information had been provided prior to her and her son’s moving in.
Government Response and Review
In light of increasing backlash, Housing Minister Nick Champion said that the property is “under review.” He understood the extent of Lauren’s concerns. He provided her and her son with emergency shelter and told her he was “pleased” to help.
Champion is ready to address any deficiencies in the remediation reclamation work. He stated that any sloppiness in the cleaning process will be dealt with immediately. “If there is some deficiency in that remediation work we will rectify that,” he said.
He pointed out that the property had been tested twice and had been professionally cleaned. Yet none of these reassurances assuaged Lauren’s concerns about returning to the house.
Political Reactions
Opposition housing spokesperson Michelle Lensink has been scathing in her criticism of the botched roll-out. She criticized the administration as “so dismissive” of Lauren’s complaints. Though Champion insisted on the inaccuracy of this description, he was insistent about the need to turn around public housing in South Australia.
Lensink challenged Champion’s confidence in the safety of the property, remarking, “Quite frankly, if Nick Champion thinks that this place is safe enough to stay in, he and his family should be prepared to stay here overnight.”
The experience has made Lauren feel cornered into a cutthroat environment. She claimed that the SA Housing Trust informed her that she was no longer allowed to live in the unit. Nonetheless, they proceeded to charge her rent, calling her condition a form of squatting. She stated, “They said that I’m not allowed to be there anymore, but they’ve charged me rent for squatting there.”
Ongoing Issues
Lauren just would not stop checking in on the cleaning progress of the property. Yet the SA Housing Trust has failed to provide her with clear answers. “I’ve asked SA Housing if it’s been cleaned and who by. They won’t tell me – I’ve asked for documents and they say, ‘Yes we’ll show you but we can’t give them to you,’” she explained.
Lauren has expressed frustration at the lack of transparency from the housing authority, stating, “They’ve now turned around and said, ‘No, we can’t show you anything.’” She firmly believes that the house may be beyond repair, saying, “As everyone said – maintenance, the neighbors – the house needs to be knocked down.”
