Abstract
Driving through the sprawling grounds of Port Kembla’s steelworks is a dystopian experience. Once occupied by more than 20,000 workers at its peak in the 1970s, the vast site is now operated by a mere 3,000 employees following decades of downsizing wrought by global economic shifts and movements towards automation. During our ‘Inside Industry’ tour, the bus made its way past torpedo ladles emanating a blistering heat haze, stockpiles of raw materials being dampened down to reduce dust movement, and towering, oxidised metal structures (see Figure 10.1). Plumes of water vapour rose from the only currently operating stack, white clouds pumping into the blue skies of New South Wales’ south coast. The tourists on the bus, all kitted out in safety gear – hard hats, goggles, gloves and high visibility jackets – peered out of the windows, craning their heads to get a glimpse of molten iron as it poured like lava into the torpedo ladles moving slowly along the plant’s internal railway. The tour guide made it clear that the steelworks has long provided the industrial backdrop for life in Wollongong – beginning as Australian Iron and Steel in 1928 and later acquired by BHP in 1935, the manufacturing plant became the city’s largest employer before its eventual decline.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Music and Heritage: New Perspectives on Place-making and Sonic Identity |
Editors | Liam Maloney, John Schofield |
Place of Publication | U.K. |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 103-113 |
Number of pages | 11 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9780429343049 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780367359836 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2021 |