Dr Cameron Jones, who was contracted by Transfield, says his 225-page report on the problem was covered up

The microbiologist contracted to assess the mould in the Nauru immigration centre says the contamination was “of epic proportions” and presented a serious health hazard to those in the camp, but that his report on the problem was covered up.



Former staff have said they have been left with cognitive impairment and chronic lung infections after living and working in contaminated buildings, and one former teacher has said her career has been derailed by the ill-health she has suffered from her time on the island.

And while the department of home affairs has said there have been no cases of anyone developing health issues following exposure to mould at the Nauru RPC, the government’s own workplace safety agency, Comcare, has confirmed to the Guardian it has “received a complaint in 2016 from a worker employed by a contractor who advised they had been diagnosed with a respiratory condition after living in a water damaged and mould affected building at the Nauru RPC”.

The microbiologist Dr Cameron Jones was contracted by the camp management contractor Transfield – the company has since been rebranded as Broadspectrum – in 2014 to assess the uncontrolled mould outbreak within the Australian-run Nauru regional processing centre, and to recommend ways to combat it.

Play Video 0:55 Mould threatens health on Nauru – video

Jones told the Guardian the mould problem he discovered in the camp was “10 out of 10”.

“It couldn’t be any worse. You have a hot, humid environment. You have non-air-conditioned accommodation, with the combination of porous sleeping materials, canvas, and hot sunlight. So essentially those tents were acting as an incubator.

“The mould was of epic proportions ... it was an absolute nightmare.”

Previous efforts to stop the spread of mould had failed, Jones said, and camp managers seemed unwilling to adhere to international or Australian mould standards. This was reflected in his 225-page report, which has been obtained by the Guardian.

The mould was a severe health hazard for those forced to live and work within the centre, Jones said.

Those exposed were at risk of candidemia, “a significant cause of death worldwide”, as well as respiratory distress, and adult onset asthma. He said anyone who was pregnant or immuno-suppressed was at acute risk.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A photograph taken this week shows mould on the ceiling in one of the rooms at the Nauru immigration centre.

“In terms of long-term exposure to mould, non-specific inflammation is really just like a strong irritation in a person’s body, people can end up with a whole host of symptoms: headaches, weight loss, cognitive impairment, people become extremely unwell.”

Jones said the security regime was “extremely hostile” to his presence. “When I got there I was just staggered, my passport was taken from me the second I arrived at the Transfield facility. They gave me a briefing, I had to sign voluminous paperwork around all sorts of secrecy. I told them, ‘I have no intention of signing this’.”

He said he was closely monitored and his work censored: photos were searched - and several deleted - by security guards, as well as video footage.

He said he was not allowed to speak to asylum seekers about their health concerns, nor with medical staff, despite promises of interviews. .

“Guards would not allow me to talk to any asylum seekers. Whenever their children came up to me, the guards would remove them. It was a very hostile six days.”

Jones was told he would not be allowed to wear personal protective equipment while collecting samples, and that even his accommodation was rife with mould.

He said the mould problem in the tent accommodation could have been remediated – though not eliminated – with air-conditioning, HEPA air purifiers and hydrophobic paint.

Nauru refugees, asylum seekers and staff exposed to 'highly toxic' mould Read more

However, the modular buildings, used for staff accommodation and as workspaces, had arrived on the island already heavily contaminated with mould and could not be rehabilitated. “Nothing could be done to those modular buildings. All of that was a disaster waiting to happen.”

Jones said he was hugely disappointed that his recommendations were not properly implemented by Broadspectrum. “It’s the worst cover-up I have seen in my professional career, and I find it reprehensible that this has been swept under the carpet in this way.”

In response, Broadspectrum said: “Broadspectrum maintained a safe and healthy workplace for its employees while working at the Regional Processing Centres until 31 October 2017.”

Department and contractor staff, asylum seekers, and refugees have contacted the Guardian following revelations that at least three confidential reports had been prepared for government, over four years, detailing that “highly toxic” mould was an overwhelming problem across the centre, that posed a “major risk to the health and safety of the occupants”.

Staff have said that they, along with unaccompanied minors, were asked to scrub the mould from tents. Others reported mould being so thick in parts that people wrote words in it, “like people do in dusty cars”.

Several have said they are suffering from what they colloquially term “Nauru lung”: a persistent, hacking cough and shortness of breath.

Many have provided photographs that show the mould remains a critical problem inside the Nauru RPC.

At least 330 refugees and asylum seekers, including 36 children, remain in mould-prone tents in RPC3.

Photos taken this week on the island and provided to the Guardian show the mould remains a pervasive problem.

An Australian teacher who gave English lessons to asylum-seeker children on Nauru has returned home with a suspected brain impairment after working in buildings she described as “alive” with mould.

The woman, who, the Guardian has chosen not to name, is one of an estimated 20 former Nauru immigration detention centre workers who have become seriously ill because of exposure to mould.

“The walls were alive,” she told AAP, as she recalled seeing workers wearing full plastic suits carrying out rectification work in the staff accommodation. “I’ve got a cognitive disability from my mould inhalation.”

All we can't see: illustrating the Nauru files Read more

The speech and memory impacts have ended her teaching career after she developed toxic mould syndrome and suffered continued fatigue.

“Often I can’t think of the word I’m trying to say,” she said. “I’m not as outgoing as I used to be. I’m a completely different person. I feel discarded and pretty useless.”

A spokesman for the department of home affairs told the Guardian “there have been no cases of anyone developing health issues following exposure to mould at the Nauru RPC”.

He said the department had implemented several mould remediation practices at the Nauru RPC and any mould problems were identified and promptly rectified.

“There is no health risk to anyone at the Nauru RPC relating to mould and the department strongly disputes any claim to the contrary.”

However, a spokesman for the government’s workplace safety agency Comcare, confirmed to the Guardian it received a complaint in 2016 “from a worker employed by a contractor who advised they had been diagnosed with a respiratory condition after living in a water damaged and mould affected building at the Nauru RPC”.

“Following inquiries, Comcare was of the view that ongoing measures were in place to deal with the problem of mould, which included replacing affected structures and installing new air conditioners.”

Comcare has been monitoring mould issues at the Nauru RPC, including through onsite inspections in 2014, 2015, and 2017.

“We are satisfied that reasonably practicable steps were taken to address problems with mould at the centre, and that the most recent site inspection in August 2017 found no significant issues.”

Comcare cannot use the coercive powers of the work health and safety act - such as issuing prohibition and improvement notices - offshore, but still conducts inspections and investigations.