Note: On 18 June 2020, the Environment Protection Authority issued notice No. 20204418 that this Management order has been completed and is no longer in force.
Note: On 20 January 2020, the Environment Protection Authority issued notice No. 20194430 to amend this order.
Environment Protection Authority
Management order
(Section 14 of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997)
Order Number 20151402; Declaration Number 21122; Area Number 3221
Service: By registered mail
The Proper Officer
Barangaroo Delivery Authority
Attention: Craig Van der Laan
A. On 6 May 2009 the Environment Protection Authority (“EPA”) declared the following area to be significantly contaminated land (declaration No. 21122) under the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997 ("the Act"):
· Part Lot 5 and Part Lot 3 in Deposited Plan (DP) 876514, Hickson Road, Millers Point.
· The part of Hickson Road adjacent to:
30 – 34 Hickson Road being Lot 11 DP1065410;
36 Hickson Road being Lot 5 DP873158 and Lot 12 DP1065410; and
38 Hickson Road being SP72797, Millers Point
B. The land was so declared because the EPA believes that the site is significantly contaminated with gasworks waste and particularly waste tar as a result of the previous use of the site as a gasworks plant.
C.
On 23 July 2010 the EPA approved a voluntary management proposal (“VMP”)
(approval No. 20101719) from Barangaroo
Delivery Authority (BDA) in relation to the land. The key milestone and
reporting requirements were subsequently updated on 30 September 2010.
D. Remediation works proposed under the approved VMP have not been carried out to date and some key milestones and reporting requirements established in the approved VMP have not been met. They include the undertaking of Surfactant Enhanced Product Recovery (SEPR) and Surfactant In Situ Chemical Oxidation (S-ISCO) pilot trials and the preparation and submission of remedial work plans.
E. The EPA is concerned about the ongoing delay on the completion dates of the major milestone events. These include but are not necessarily limited to:
1) The proposed amendments to VMP that the EPA received in July 2014 committed the draft remedial work plans (RWPs) for Blocks 4/5 to be submitted by March 2015. The currently proposed amendments to VMP (10 August 2015) have the draft RWPs submission date further postponed to April 2016.
2) In terms of the S-ISCO pilot trial, the currently proposed amendments to VMP (10 August 2015) suggest that the trial will take 1 year to be completed from October 2015 – September 2016. It is noted that the approved VMP (July 2010) committed the S-ISCO pilot trial to be “completed within 23 weeks following issue of relevant approvals and permits to allow the S-ISCO pilot trials to be undertaken”. The EPA understands that the relevant Planning approval has been in place since March 2011. This suggests that the pilot trial should have been completed by September 2011. The current schedule therefore amounts to 5 years delay from the approved VMP commitment.
3) Information made available to the EPA by BDA to date indicates that the completion of remediation works for Blocks 4/5 and for Hickson Road have been further revised to March 2018 and June 2019, respectively. The EPA is concerned that, as the Barangaroo site will be increasingly populated by 2016 and onward, and the land use conflict between the Barangaroo site/Hickson Road remediation and the populated surrounding area will be exacerbated.
F. In view of the ongoing non-compliance of the terms of the approved VMP and the potential consequence in terms of increasing land use conflict within and around the Barangaroo site because of the non-compliance of the approved VMP, the EPA considers it prudent that its regulation of part of the Barangaroo site be via a management order, which is legally enforceable, rather than via an approved VMP, and that it is in the public interest to do so.
G. Consequently, the EPA withdraws its approval of VMP No. 20101719 with effect from the date of this order.
H. Under s13 (6) of the Act, any public authority may be specified as the subject of a management order whether or not as “an appropriate person” within the meaning of the Act.
This
order applies to the significantly contaminated land identified in declaration
No. 21122 made on 6 May
2009 and listed in the
following table (“the land”).
|
Description |
Address |
|
Part Lot 5 and Part Lot 3 in Deposited Plan (DP) 876514, Hickson Road, Millers Point. (This land is referred to as Blocks 4/5 by BDA.) |
Hickson Road, Millers Point |
|
The part of Hickson Road adjacent to: 30 – 34 Hickson Road being Lot 11 DP1065410; 36 Hickson Road being Lot 5 DP873158 and Lot 12 DP1065410; and 38 Hickson Road being SP72797, Millers Point (The above land is referred to as Hickson Road) |
Hickson Road, Millers Point |
The persons who are required to be served with a copy of this order for the purposes of s.14(2) of the Act are listed in the following table.
Land |
Person |
|
Part Lot 5 and Part Lot 3 in Deposited Plan (DP) 876514, Hickson Road, Millers Point (Blocks 4/5)
The part of Hickson Road adjacent to: 30 – 34 Hickson Road being Lot 11 DP1065410; 36 Hickson Road being Lot 5 DP873158 and Lot 12 DP1065410; and 38 Hickson Road being SP72797, Millers Point (Hickson Road)
|
Jemena as the person who the EPA has reason to believe may be responsible for the significant contamination of the land.
BDA as the owner of the land |
The EPA believes that the site is contaminated with gasworks waste and particularly waste tar as a result of the previous use of the site as a gasworks plant. The chemical composition of gasworks waste includes the following substances (“the contaminants”): polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX); total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs); ammonia; phenol and cyanide.
.
The EPA believes that the land is contaminated and that the contamination is significant enough to warrant regulation for the following reasons:
- Groundwater on the site has been found to be contaminated by TPHs, PAHs, BTEX, ammonia, phenol and cyanide at concentrations significantly exceeding the relevant trigger values for the protection of human health and aquatic ecosystems in the Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality (ANZECC and ARMCANZ, 2000).
- These groundwater contaminants include human carcinogens and substances toxic to aquatic ecosystems.
- The contaminated groundwater is impacting on the surrounding areas including the basement of a residential building adjacent to the site, potentially exposing humans in that building to harmful vapours; however it is currently being effectively controlled.
- Contaminated groundwater is likely to be migrating from the site to Darling Harbour and could ultimately affect aquatic ecosystems.
BDA has prepared a remedial action plan (RAP) that serves the dual purposes of addressing the significant contamination on the site as well as rendering the site suitable for the proposed redevelopment. The EPA is satisfied with the proposed remediation strategy for addressing the significant contamination of the land.
By this notice the EPA orders BDA as a public authority to which this order relates to do the following (subject to necessary approvals):
1. Provide the EPA with Remedial Work Plan(s) (RWP(s)) for the proposed remediation of Blocks 4/5 by April 2016 for EPA review. The RWP(s) must provide detailed pollution control measures and operational arrangement for the proposed offsite treatment of gasworks waste.
2. Commence Block 4 remediation works including cut-off walls by November 2015 (it is noted that they have commenced).
3. Complete Block 4 remediation works by March 2018.
4. Prepare and submit Block 4 site validation report by June 2018.
5. Commence Block 5 remediation works by February 2016.
6. Complete Block 5 remediation works by March 2018.
7. Prepare and submit Block 5 site validation report by February 2019.
8. Commence the SEPR and S-ISCO pilot trials by November 2015 (commenced).
9. Complete the SEPR and S-ISCO pilot trials by December 2016.
10. Provide the EPA with the pilot trial report by February 2017.
11. Based on the pilot trials results, provide the EPA with a RWP for the remediation of Hickson Road by March 2017 for EPA review.
12. Commence Hickson Road remediation works by March 2017.
13. Complete Hickson Road remediation works by June 2019.
14. Prepare and submit Hickson Road site validation report by December 2019.
15. Submit a Site Audit Statement and Summary Report prepared by an EPA-accredited Site Auditor to the EPA for the completion of remediation works required under this order by January 2020.
Carry out all the activities associated with remediation of the land in a manner that prevents or minimises the emission of dust, odour and noise from the site. Environmental monitoring and stormwater, sediment, erosion and dust control measures must be implemented in accordance with the RAP and the RWP(s).
Make available for inspection by any person, free of charge, and provide a copy to any person for a reasonable fee:
a. each report; and
b. each plan of management;
required to be prepared and submitted to the EPA under this management order. It is not necessary to disclose:
(i) any information contained in those documents that relates to any manufacturing or other industrial or commercial secrets or working processes; or
(ii) any personal information, within the meaning of the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998, contained in those documents.
[Signed]
NIALL JOHNSTON
Manager Contaminated Sites
Environment Protection Authority
(by delegation)
Date: 16 December 2015
NOTE:
Cost Recovery
Section 34 of the Act allows the EPA to recover its costs in connection with preparing and serving, monitoring actions under, and seeking compliance with a management order.
Information recorded by the EPA
Section 58 of the Act requires the EPA to maintain a public record. A copy of this management order will be included in the public record.
Information recorded by councils
Section 59 of the Act requires the EPA to give a copy of this order to the relevant local council. The council is then required to note on its planning certificate issued pursuant to s.149 (2) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 that the land is currently subject to a management order. The EPA is required to notify council as soon as practicable when the order is no longer in force and the notation on the s.149 (2) certificate can be removed.
Relationship to other regulatory instrument
This order does not affect the provisions of any relevant environmental planning instruments which may control the land on which the land is located or provisions of any other environmental protection legislation administered by the EPA.
Guidelines made or approved under section 105 of the CLM Act.
All the investigation or remediation works must be carried out consistent with guidelines made or approved under section 105 of the Act. See www.epa.nsw.gov.au/clm/guidelines.htm.
Appeal rights
Under section 61 of the Act a person who is the subject of a management order has the right to appeal against the management order to the Land and Environment Court within 21 days of after the date of service.