Community Update: Power station decommissioning – July 12, 2018

As part of Alcoa of Australia’s decommissioning of the Anglesea power station and mine, the main power station building was scheduled to be felled using controlled explosives on 30 May. The demolition activity, which was safely executed, did not result in the complete collapse of the structure.

Further to the last community update (Surf Coast Times, 5 July), analysis to determine why the structure only partially collapsed has progressed. Preliminary findings indicate a number of potential contributing factors and further work is now underway by the principal contractor to finalise this work.

Crucially, this analysis will inform the methodology for the demolition of the remaining structure.

Given this work is ongoing, further demolition activity has not yet been scheduled. It will not occur in July.

Alcoa remains committed to ensuring the continued safety of onsite personnel and the community.

The structure’s stability continues to be closely monitored. Instrumentation and engineering assessments continue to confirm there has been no movement in the structure. A third engineering study is underway to provide a further independent review of the previous assessments in relation to the stability of the structure.

Air monitoring remains in place; there have been no airborne asbestos fibres detected.

As stated previously, the demolition occurred following a twelve-month asbestos removal program, a process regulated by Worksafe Victoria.

The safety exclusion zone also remains in place and is monitored by security officers and video surveillance 24 hours per day.

Worksafe Victoria and EPA Victoria continue to be closely informed about activities at the site and both agencies have issued public statements about the demolition activity.

Alcoa is committed to keeping the community informed about the future demolition methodology and timeline through ongoing communication channels including weekly community updates published in the Surf Coast Times, bimonthly Alcoa Community Consultation Network (CCN) meetings and other relevant channels.

To read more about the latest Alcoa CCN meeting held on 18 June, together with previous meetings and community updates, visit www.alcoa.com.au/anglesea.

To receive email updates from Alcoa please email [email protected].