EPA starts removing final Broderick Road waste

WORKS have started on removing the final stockpile of waste on the dump site at Broderick Road in Lara.

Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) Broderick Road Clean Up Project Manager Michael Fitzgerald said more than 133,000 cubic metres of waste had been removed from the site since the clean-up started in April 2019.

About 192,000 cubic metres of material remains onsite, spread across one large stockpile. Sampling of the remaining stockpile, the largest on site at the start of the clean-up project, has shown a mix of construction and demolition waste, which was contaminated with small pieces of non-friable asbestos.

“Due to the presence of asbestos in the stockpile, the material is unfortunately unsuitable for recycling,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

“EPA’s role at Broderick Road is to reduce the risk of a fire, clean up the site and make it safe, and to dispose of the waste materials at properly licensed facilities. The principal contractor will transport the material offsite to licensed landfills. We expect this process to take until mid-2022 to complete.

“This is the best outcome in order to eliminate the hazard onsite and reduce the risk to human health and the environment.”

Mr Fitzgerald said a qualified, licensed asbestos removalist is conducting the removal of all material containing asbestos at Broderick Road, in line with strict WorkSafe controls. Air quality is monitored during removal works at all fence boundaries, with additional monitoring onsite.

“Monitoring, both on site and at the site boundaries, has confirmed all results to date are below the asbestos detection limit,” Mr Fitzgerald said, adding that there were several controls in place to mitigate site impacts, including:

• High volume water and fog cannons to wet the pile down
• Exclusion zones set up for all works
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for all employees onsite
• Air quality monitoring along all fence boundaries and additional monitoring at exclusion zones and within the work area, monitored by an independent occupational hygienist daily, and
• Truck washing, including a wheel wash system for vehicles leaving the site.

In addition to these controls, the waste is removed from the site in EPA-permitted trucks in line with strict WorkSafe controls, transported to landfills licensed to accept asbestos-contaminated material and tracked to its destination by EPA.

The site is monitored continuously by security with CCTV and infrared cameras.

Works are continually assessed and managed on site to control any potential dust being produced during the works. EPA are working closely with the contractor to monitor all the controls on site.

An independent environmental consultant and an independent occupational hygienist are overseeing all controls and sampling onsite. The clean-up is on track to be completed by mid-2022.