Waste plant fire risk

Helicopters at the ready to prevent ‘catastrophic’ blaze at Lara facility

FIREFIGHTING helicopters will be at the ready to prevent a “likely” catastrophic fire at a controversial defunct waste processing facility in Lara.

Corio CFA’s operations officer Pat Geary said helicopters could be used as part of a special turnout procedure designed for the site, where there is a high risk of a “long duration, very dirty and dangerous” fire.

Security is also patrolling the site around the clock, to ensure an immediate response if a fire starts somewhere in the 350,000 cubic metres of waste, which has been untouched since late last year.

“We did a risk assessment on that site perhaps 18 months ago, and the likelihood of having a fire there is likely,” Mr Geary said. “The consequences we believe will be catastrophic.”

“We’ve got special turnout procedures designed. If the helicopters are available on the day and they’re not fighting a bushfire somewhere, they will be used — but for a deep-seated fire the choppers won’t be that successful, as the water tends to wash off the top of these piles.

“If our first response is unable to contain the fire then it could potentially become a long duration, very dirty and dangerous job.

“If it’s on a windy, strong northerly wind, hot, stinking summer day, we’re going to have a lot of trouble containing that fire.”

There are varying reports of what building materials are stored at the site, with an EnviroProtect report suggesting there are about 4000 used tyres and several drums of oil buried in the piles, and a January site inspection by the EPA and WorkSafe finding samples of asbestos — although a Hazard Alert report suggested the levels were relatively low.

“Certainly on viewing the pile there’s a lot of fairly ordinary and very highly flammable materials on that pile, but unfortunately it’s been compressed and has had dirt spread in it,” Mr Geary said.

“There is environmental testing being done over the next few weeks, and they’re going to try and identify what’s actually in the pile. That will make a big difference on how it is treated.”

It is understood an out of control fire at the site could burn for weeks on end, similar to the 2017 Coolaroo recycling plant fire, which burned for more than two weeks, forcing some nearby residents to evacuate.

The company behind the site, C&D Recycling, will front the Federal Court later this month, after the Australian Taxation Office initiated legal action to have the troubled firm wound up.

Company director David McAuliffe this month told the Addy that C&D Recycling’s liabilities extended past $1 million.

The proceedings cast further doubt on the necessary clean-up of the site, which has been estimated at costing up to $100 million.