Tenterfield Shire Council must resolve a number of waste management issues raised by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a matter of priority.
The EPA met with the council on Monday before attending the council’s extraordinary meeting that afternoon in relation to the environmental issues that had come to light after the recent fire at the Tenterfield Waste Transfer Station.
EPA’s Head of Regional Operations Unit Armidale, Robert O’Hern, said the EPA was seeking immediate action from the council to bring the waste transfer station back into compliance with environmental legislation. A formal plan for the waste transfer station is required within one month.
“What we’ve observed at the waste transfer station is less than desirable,” Mr O’Hern said.
“At the moment, with the tyres stored there, it should be licensed,” he said.
The council has provided an undertaking to have the tyres removed to a suitably licensed landfill or tyre recycler promptly.
The EPA also recommended to the council that the waste transfer station be managed and staffed appropriately to prevent waste build up and unsupervised disposal of waste.
The council agreed to provide a waste management strategy for Tenterfield Shire, which will include strategies for minimising waste, reusing materials where possible and waste separation (recycling) to reduce waste going to landfill, appropriate management and staffing for the waste transfer station, management of all landfills/transfer stations in the shire and management of Boonoo Boonoo landfill and ultimately selecting a new landfill for Tenterfield shire in a suitable location.
The plan is expected to have short, medium and long term actions to cover waste management in the shire over the next five to 10 years.
The timelines for the waste management strategy are being negotiated and will depend on engaging suitable consultants to draft the plan. However, the EPA expects a draft concept plan could be provided within three months.
At the extraordinary meeting, Tenterfield Shire Mayor Toby Smith said “we recognise as a council we do have some issues”, which was met by laughter from the full public gallery.
“This will be very costly to bring our waste management facilities up to the required standards,” Cr Smith said.
“Let’s hope we can move forward from here and I think we can. We need to do more and I recognise that,” he said.
At the meeting, Mr O’Hern cleared up the conflicting information between the council and the EPA in relation to when the council had actually notified the EPA of the recent fire at the transfer station.
He said the council had in fact contacted the EPA about 7am on the morning of the fire, however, the council officer had contacted an EPA staff member who was away on holidays instead of the required NSW Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) Environment Line.
Councillors Lawrie West, Phil Yates and John Macnish questioned why councillors were not informed of the fire.
“We’re not informed of these issues. It’s not hard to send out an email,” Cr Macnish said.
Story: Rebecca Brown
