Environment Protection Authority

 

Remediation Order

 

Section 23 of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997

 

 

Notice Number: 23009A

Area Number:Area: 3198353

 

Service: By Registered Mail to address shown in EPA records

 

Lake Macquarie City Municipal Council

Box 1906

Hunter Regional Mail Centre NSW 2310

 

Attention: Mr K Holt, General Manager

 

 

Background

 

A.                  On 10 September 2002 the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) declared the following land (collectively referred to as "the site") as a remediation site under s.21 of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997 (the Act):

 

·            Lot 201 DP 805914 in the Local Government Area of Lake Macquarie City, known locally as the Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter located in Boolaroo, New South Wales ("the Pasminco site");

·            that part of the bed sediments of the southern part of Cockle Creek in line with the northern boundary of the Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter (Lot 201 DP805914) and continuing south to Cockle Bay ("the Cockle Creek site"); and

·            the bed sediments of Cockle Bay in North Lake Macquarie extending from Cockle Creek and enclosed by a straight line from the public wharf marked in dark brown on the DLWC map (a copy of which is attached to this Order)from Spears Point Park and the foreshore of Cockle Bay at the end of Aspinall Street, Booragul ("the Cockle Bay site"). (see map attached to this order).

 

B.                 The site has been found to be contaminated with metals, in particular lead, cadmium and zinc ("the contaminants") in such a way as to present a significant risk of harm.

 

C.                 On 1 July 2003 the EPA served a remediation order on Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter Pty Ltd as a person principally responsible for the contamination at and emitting from the Pasminco site. That order applies to the Pasminco site only.

D.                 The EPA has considered the matters in s.9 of the Act and found that, contaminants from the Pasminco site are migrating in groundwater towards Cockle Bay and Cockle Creek and in surface water to Cockle Creek, which discharges to Cockle Bay. The contaminants have been deposited in the sediments in Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay. The type of contaminants detected in the Bay and Creek correlate with the substances and waste slags generated at the Pasminco site as part of the smelting activities.

 

The EPA has found that:

·         The contaminants in Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay would not be expected to occur at the level found if there were no industrial sources of the contaminants in the drainage catchment of Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay;

·         The contaminants are present in the bed sediments of Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay at concentrations significantly above the sediment quality guidelines in the Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality, sediment quality guidelines (of the Australian and New Zealand Environment Conservation Council (ANZECC) 2000);

·         There is evidence that increased rates of skeletal abnormalities have occurred in larval fish in Cockle Bay (North Lake Macquarie);

·         There is evidence of a decreased scope for growth in test organisms placed in sediments of Cockle Bay;

·         There is evidence of an accumulation of lead and cadmium in muscle and reproductive tissues of fish in Cockle Bay; and

·         Some uses of Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay are likely to cause disturbance of the contaminants in the bed sediments and further increase the risk of exposure of aquatic organisms.

 

The EPA has found that the contamination in the bed sediments at the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites poses a significant risk of harm to the environment. There is a significant risk that:

·         Harm is being caused to estuarine organisms living in the sediments by direct exposure to the contaminated sediments; and

·         Harm may be caused to larger aquatic organisms from the consumption of contaminated sediments and smaller aquatic organisms.

 

E.                 This order applies to the Cockle Creek and the Cockle Bay sites (see map attached to this order).

 

F.                  The beds of the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites are vested in the Crown in right of the State of New South Wales and are managed by the Department of Lands (and previously by the Department of Land and Water Conservation).

 

G.                 The beds of the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites may be subject to maintenance dredging, without the need for development consent from Lake Macquarie City Municipal Council, under the State Environmental Planning Policy No 35 - Maintenance Dredging of Tidal Waterways (SEPP 35) in force under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

 

H.                 The purpose of this order is to ensure disturbance of contaminants in sediments at the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites is minimised and that persons proposing to carry on activities which may disturb these sediments prepare and comply with an EPA approved management plan. The EPA may review the adequacy of this management strategy in light of future monitoring and scientific knowledge ofn the impact caused by these sediments.

 

I.                     The EPA has considered all submissions received in response to the remediation site declaration as to whether an order should be made in relation to the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites.

 

J.                   The EPA has provided a copy of this order to Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter Pty Limited ACN 000 083 670 for the purposes of s.23(4)(b) of the Act, which requires the EPA to serve copies of the order on 'those persons who the EPA has reason to believe contaminated the land in such a way as to present a significant risk of harm.'

 

K.                 The EPA has served a similar order on the Department of Lands as a public authority, under sections s.12(5) and 23(1) of the Act.

 

 

Action required by this order

 

Pursuant to section 23(1) of the Act, the EPA orders Lake Macquarie City Municipal Council, being a public authority within the meaning of the Act, to do the following:

 

1.      Lake Macquarie City Municipal Council, must refrain from carrying out, or causing, permitting, consenting to or allowing another person to carry out, any works or activities at the Cockle Creek or and Cockle Bay sites that would result in the disturbance, or further disturbance, of bed sediment at the Cockle Creek or and Cockle Bay sites except as provided by this order.

 

Without limiting the above, examples of the types of works or activities that may come within the scope of this Order include; construction and maintenance work such as dredging or excavation activities for boating facilities (such as piers, wharves, slipways or marinas) or infrastructure (including bridges or pipelines).

 

2.      Lake Macquarie City Municipal Council must not exercise its functions under other legislation inconsistently with the requirements of this order.

 

3.      Prior to commencing any such works or activities described or referred to in paragraph 1 above, the person proposing to conduct the works or activities must prepare and submit for the EPA's approval a written management plan with specific measures directed at minimising the disturbance and migration of the contaminantscontaminated in the bed sediments at the Cockle Creek and Cockle Bay sites.

 

4.      The management plan submitted to the EPA must be prepared in accordance with the EPA publication titled Guidelines for Consultants Reporting on Contaminated Sites, dated November 1997, as it relates to investigation and or remedial action plans.

 

5.                  The person proposing to conduct the works or activities must have the management plan audited by an accredited site auditor in accordance with Part 4 of the Act before submitting the plan to the EPA for approval.

 

6.      The EPA may approve the management plan as submitted or approve the management plan subject to a requirement that additional mitigation measures be implemented. The person proposing to conduct the works or activities cannot commence such works or activities until the management plan submitted to the EPA has been approved in writing.

 

7.      The works or activities must be carried out in accordance with the management plan approved by the EPA.

 

8.      On completion of the works or activities, the person having conducted them must prepare, and furnish the EPA with, a report which addresses the manner in which the works were implemented and how the management plan was complied with.

 

 

[SIGNED]

 

 

 

 

 

CAROLYN STRANGE

Director Contaminated Sites

Department of Environment and Conservation Environment Protection Authority

(by Delegation)

 

Date: 19 July 2004

 

 

 

 

NOTE:

 

Relationship to other regulatory instrument

This order applies in addition to the provisions of any relevant environmental planning instruments which may apply to the land and the provisions of any environmental protection legislation administered by the EPA.

 

Information recorded by the EPA

Section 58 of the Act requires the EPA to maintain a public record of action taken under the Act. A copy of this remediation order will be included in the public record.

 

Information recorded by councils

Section 59 of the Act requires the EPA to notify the relevant local council as soon as practicable after an order is made. 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 remediation 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 may be removed.

Term of this order

This order may only be varied or revoked in writing pursuant to section 44 of the Act.

A variation to the order may modify or add to the terms and specifications of the order. The EPA may issue a further remediation order to an appropriate person or public authority as defined in s.12 (2) of the Act, including 'a person who had principal responsibility for such contamination of the land'. Such decisions may be made as a result of new advice or information, new remediation technology or changes in the proposed use of the land and may require some other form of remediation action.

 

Periodic review and further remediation action

No active remediation works are envisaged, for the time being. Rather, the critical issue is that the bed sediments are not disturbed without appropriate investigation. The appropriateness of this strategy will be required to be periodically reviewed.

 

 

 

 

Cc:

 

Department of Infrastructure Planning and Natural Resources Regional Director Ms Cathy Cole P O Box 2213 DANGAR NSW 2309	Hunter Water Corporation Manager Strategic Operations Mr Alan Thornton P O Box 5171 Hunter Regional Mail Centre NSW 2310
Department of Lands Manager of Operations Mr Terry New PO Box 6 EAST MAITLAND NSW 2323	Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter Pty Ltd Site Manager Mr Stuart Munro PO Box 42 BOOLAROO NSW 2284
Ferrier Hodgson Mr John Batchelor, Manager PO Box 290 Collins St West MELBOURNE VIC 8007	Roads and Traffic Authority Regional Manager Newcastle Mr Bob Sharp Locked Bag 30 NEWCASTLE NSW 2300

 

 

Department of Lands

Manager of Operations

Mr Terry New

PO Box 6

East EAST MAITLANDaitland

NSW 2323

 

Hunter Water Corporation

Manager Strategic Operations

Mr Alan Thornton

P O Box 5171

Hunter Regional Mail Centre

NSW 2310

 

Department of Infrastructure Planning and Natural ResourcesR

Regional Director

Ms Cathy Cole

P O Box 2213

DANGAR

NSW 2309

 

 

 

Pasminco Cockle Creek Smelter Pty Ltd

General Manager

Mr Paul Arndt

PO Box 42

BOOLAROO

NSW 2284

 

Roads and Traffic Authority

Regional Manager Newcastle

Mr Bob Sharp

Locked Bag 30

NEWCASTLE

NSW 2300

 

Ferrier Hodgson

Mr John Batchelor, Manager

PO Box 290 Collins St West

MELBOURNE

VIC 8007