The first truckloads of construction and demolition waste will be removed from the huge waste stockpile at Broderick Road in Lara – helping to protect the local community and environment.
Victorian Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio said the Victorian Government had stepped in to take over management of the stockpile and begin the enormous clean-up effort, which is expected to cost more than $30 million.
Poor site management practices by the previous operator let the recycling waste grow to dangerous levels, resulting in an unacceptable fire risk to the local community, the environment and emergency services.
The site contains an estimated 320,000m3 of mostly construction and demolition waste, including materials such as timber, concrete, bricks, plaster, glass and ceramics.
The first stage will be the processing and removal of a 27,000 cubic metre stockpile of timber, weighing an estimated 3,500 tonnes, starting on Monday 16 September 2019.
The Victorian Government has provided funding of $30 million to maintain fire prevention measures and clean up the site – a job that could take several years.
The City of Greater Geelong will project manage the works on behalf of EPA and Government – including managing the interim fire risk measures at the site with maintaining 24/7 security, secure fencing and maintenance of firefighting equipment.
EPA will rigorously pursue the previous site occupiers, owners, company directors and any other relevant parties to recover the costs of the fire prevention measures and clean up.
Since August 2017, EPA has had additional powers to support Victoria’s fire services and issue remedial notices to facilities not properly managing potential fire risks. These powers will be strengthened further under the new Environment Protection Act which will come into effect on 1 July 2020, to prevent situations like this in the future.
Source: Vic Government