‘Toothless tiger’: Inner West Council mayor lashes NSW EPA over delay in removing asbestos mulch at Rozelle Parklands
The mayor of a local council which became ground zero for Sydney’s asbestos-contaminated mulch scandal has furiously lashed the state’s peak environmental body as a “toothless tiger” over delays to clean up a major park.
On Thursday, the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) issued a notice to extend the deadline for the remediation, and safe disposal of the mulch from Rozelle Parklands and some surrounding park areas by four weeks, until March 28.
Previously, orders said the removal of the mulch needed to be completed by February 29, with Transport for NSW (TfNSW) required to provide evidence to the EPA of the safe disposal by March 7.
The environmental agency said the extension was required due to delays in remediation near road corridors, which can only be completed at night. Administrative issues like traffic management, establishing protected work zones and acquiring licenses have added to hold ups.
Other areas have also required “further risk assessment and control measures” to manage the ”environmental and human health risks associated with the removal of mulch”.
Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne lashed the EPA for allowing the extension, saying more resources needed to be deployed to the remediation efforts.
“Granting this extension leaves the EPA looking like a toothless tiger,” Mr Byrne said.
“It’s been obvious for weeks that too few staff were being employed to clean up the contaminated mulch in time to meet the deadline and now this cost cutting is being rewarded.
“This is not a high school history assignment in which you ask for more time, this is a public safety threat that should have been cleaned up before now.”
The state’s large-spread asbestos nightmare was triggered in early January after non-friable pieces of asbestos was detected near a playground.
The park remains closed to ensure the large-scale remediation project removes the ten tonnes of recycled mulch from the site.
Balmain MP Kobi Shetty said the community is “rightly outraged about this delay”.
“It is incredibly frustrating news after we have waited so long for this park to be opened – to then have it open for less than a month before it was shut down,” she said.
“This contamination should never have been able to happen. Transport for NSW and the contractor John Holland CPB must ensure the clean-up of asbestos contaminated mulch is a priority. “
She vowed to continue pressuring the government to ensure the timely remediation of the park and share paths.
“I’ll be working closely with my colleague Cate Faehrmann in the Upper House who is chairing the Inquiry into the Rozelle Interchange project. The remit of this Inquiry includes the unacceptable contamination of Rozelle Parklands,” Ms Shetty said.
“We need to determine how this contamination happened, and what can be done in future to prevent similar incidents. Our community deserves better.”
As it stands 61 sites, including schools, parks, and hospitals, across the state have returned positive samples of asbestos-contaminated mulch.
Originally published as ‘Toothless tiger’: Inner West Council mayor lashes NSW EPA over delay in removing asbestos mulch at Rozelle Parklands
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