By Emily Laing
Cranbourne’s infamous SBI Landfill is facing Supreme Court action after the EPA began legal proceedings over extended issues with odour permeating nearby areas, and distraught residents are enjoying this much needed reprieve.
Residents living nearby the landfill site have been “plagued“ with an offensive odour since March 2022.
Residents have reported declining mental health as the odour prevents them from spending time outside and permeates their homes.
The court action taken by the EPA is a welcome milestone in their fight to have SBI face real consequences for ineffective management of the tip.
“Why wouldn’t we be happy,“ nearby resident David Clark said.
“As a whole that’s what we all wanted.
“SBI always had commercial interests ahead of community standards, as I know working in a similar field which is covered by regulatory guidelines.“
Mr Clark said SBI is now suffering the “consequences of [their] actions“.
Chair of the SBI Community Consultative Committee, Norman Ridley said while the surrounding areas “undoubtedly“ suffered from the odour for over twelve months, there has been little in the way of odour reports since April, and he believes the changes to infrastructure made by SBI upon EPA recommendations has made a palpable difference.
“Many of the residents that I speak to are more focused on the present and looking forward because we do not want the odour impact to continue,“ he said.
“Much work has already been done and that has resulted in virtually no odour reports from the community since early April.
“My regular engagement with SBI, the EPA and others gives me reassurance that the actions already taken have had a positive impact on the community, and the planned infrastructure improvements now being implemented give me confidence that we will not suffer the odour impacts of mid-2022 again.“
EPA alleged that SBI failed to comply with the requirements of its operating licence and failed to meet its environmental duty at the Ballarto road site.
SBI is facing fines of $1.8 million for the company and $360,000 for directors in response to each allegation, of which five were listed, after the EPA sought civil penalties for the landfill’s negative community impact.
EPA is currently seeking interim court orders to prevent SBI from accepting any further waste at the site, until it “improves management of the landfill site and prevents unacceptable impacts on human health and the environment”.
However, some locals are hoping for a more permanent outcome.
“The only reasonable consequence here is the site needs to be shut down,“ nearby resident Ray Luckins said.
“There is no way landfill should exist 500 metres from residential areas.“
Odours emanating from the tip were initially reported by nearby residents in March 2022, and since then the EPA has been taking constant regulatory action to rectify the issue, to no avail.
“As these matters are now before the Court, EPA will not be making any further comments,” the EPA stated.
