Dump a real worry

MORE concerning developments today in the messy saga of the Lara dump.

Authorities are now planning to run simulation drill exercises on how to fight or contain a fire on the site.

This is perhaps the strongest sign that a raging toxic dump fire this summer is more than just a slim possibility.

It is a genuine risk or, to use the language of the US Supreme Court, a clear and present danger.

The recent factory fire in the western suburbs of Melbourne was contained and extinguished relatively quickly over a 48-hour period.

But it still spread a toxic cloud over a big area and a number of suburbs. And it left behind lingering health concerns including warnings from environmental authorities for people not to touch the water of local rivers.

Imagine the fallout then if the 350,000 cubic metres of debris in this dump were to catch alight.

Depending on winds such a fire could become a concern for areas way beyond Lara.

Add to that the fact experts estimate that an out-of-control Lara dump fire could burn not for 48 hours but for up to a month.

You would think as the warmer weather approaches it would be a race against time to clear the rubbish before disaster ensues. But this really is a mess. The operator is likely on his yacht somewhere and not helping. (Once again Cr Anthony Aitken is the voice of reason vowing to relentlessly pursue the operator of the now insolvent business.)

The landowner still has more than a fortnight to present their court-ordered plan on how they will rehabilitate that site.

But council CEO Martin Cutter has said the site will not be cleared by summer.

As one of Cormac McCarthy’s characters once said: ‘If it aint a mess it’ll do til a mess gets here.’

Meanwhile, for the residents of Lara and surrounds this is likely to be a long, hot summer but not a particularly relaxed and comfortable one.