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Article Two
Right to Respond: Remediation and remediated land management at Sydney Olympic Park
Joe Woodward, Deputy Director General, Environment Protection and Regulation NSW Department of Environment
The November edition of the Environmental Scientist, The Greenest Games, contained an article by Sharon Beder that was highly critical of the method adopted by the New South Wales Government's to contain toxics during the conversion of the Homebush Bay on the Olympic Site. In response, Joe Woodward, Deputy Director General Environment Protection and Regulation NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water, defends his department's actions.
The remediation of past domestic, commercial and industrial waste sites at Sydney Olympic Park was the largest project of its kind in Australia and is one of the most significant environmental legacies of the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games
Following decades of controlled and uncontrolled landfilling, approximately 160 hectares of land was deemed to contain wastes including domestic garbage, industrial hydrocarbons, power station ash, asbestos and demolition rubble.
Between 1992 and 2000, the NSW Government allocated $137 million for remedial action to clean up polluted areas. The remediation policy at the time was to safely contain, and where possible treat, waste on site, rather than relocating it to other places.
A number of investigations were done prior to the commencement of works. Pollution profiles of various areas were established and groundwater and soil investigations undertaken, as well as studies of the natural environment.
Remedial action varied according to the type and location of the waste and local hydrological and soil conditions and included the recovery, consolidation and containment of about 9 million cubic metres of waste. Approximately 400 tonnes of soil contaminated with hydrocarbons and classified under environmental legislation as ‘scheduled chemical waste’ was treated in a two-stage thermal desorption process.
The majority of the buried waste was removed and relocated to designated waste containment mounds. The areas were capped, landscaped and turned into parkland. Leachate collection and transfer systems were built to prevent leachate from escaping.
The majority of leachate generated by these landfills is currently pumped to a commercial liquid waste treatment facility close to Sydney Olympic Park. Some leachate is treated in constructed evaporation ponds. Leachate from the site of a former gas works facility is treated in bioremediation ponds where bacteria degrade hydrocarbons to water and carbon dioxide.
The remediation works were regulated by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA), and are subject to stringent conditions directed at ensuring environmental protection and public safety.
Following remediation, the landfills were certified as suitable for use as parks and recreational open space by an accredited site auditor, in accordance with regulatory requirements.
During remediation works, the NSW Government placed a high premium on the transparency of its decision-making processes and the effective communication of those processes to the broader community.
In the lead up to (and immediately after) the Games, the authority initiated and actively participated in external reviews of its ongoing environmental performance at a local, national and international level.
Programs aimed at facilitating public scrutiny and verification were established including:
- The Homebush Bay Environmental Reference Group was an important mechanism for consultation with the community on the long term remediation strategy for Sydney Olympic Park. The role of the Reference Group was to provide feedback on issues related to the development and monitoring of the remediated lands. It also ensured that community, scientific and environment groups have a voice in the on-going management of the remediated areas.
- The Olympic Environment Forum comprised representatives of various government agencies and environmental groups including Greenpeace, Green Games Watch 2000 and Auburn Greenspace. The Forum met fortnightly to discuss various issues of environmental management relating to site remediation and redevelopment and the provision of facilities and events for the Games.
The EPA has reviewed five years of post-remediation monitoring data and is generally satisfied with the monitoring results, which suggest that the waste containment areas pose no unacceptable impact on their surrounding environment.
The landfills continue to be managed by the Authority; landfill management and the associated environmental monitoring program is regulated by the EPA.
An accredited site auditor has confirmed the implementation of this program will ensure appropriate ongoing management of the waste containment system.
I note Ms Beder has with hindsight criticised the “Green Games” and in particular Sydney Olympic park, but she fails to mention that without the incentive of the 2000 Olympic Games, the Sydney Olympic Park site might still be just another unresolved blight, closed off entirely to the public.
The remediation and remediated lands management at Sydney Olympic Park has resulted in positive outcomes for the environment, for the people of NSW and for the ongoing management of contaminated lands.
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