Workers needed for new Swanbank concrete plant as Wood Mulching Industries’ development application for facility approved

The new facility will produce 240,000 tonnes a year of pre-mixed concrete and staff are needed with the operation to run six days a week.

PLANS for a concrete plant in Ipswich which will produce 240,000 tonnes a year has been approved by the council more than five years after an application was first submitted.

The development application was given the green light by Ipswich City Council at the end of June with the facility to be constructed on a nine hectare lot at Swanbank.

The application was submitted by Wood Mulching Industries, a longstanding local business which was established in 1993.

The plant forms part of a wider masterplan by the application for the area.

The land, which is at the intersection of Mount Juillerat Drive and Wesley Way, is owned by Swanbank Industrial Park Pty Ltd.

A wood mulching and composting facility is operated by WMI on the north eastern boundary of the site, with vacant industrial land to the south east and south west.

The approved facility will be made up of two concrete mixing silos up to 22 metres tall, a slump stand, aggregate storage bins, a truck washout and vehicle manoeuvring areas.

Plans were first submitted in 2016.

The ‘work area’ will be 5000 m2 with an office building and 1700 m2 set aside for “stormwater management, treated wastewater effluent disposal and landscaped buffer purposes”.

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The development is expected to employ five full-time staff and will operate 5.30am-6pm Monday to Friday and 6.30am-noon on Saturdays.

“Whilst there are some existing industrial uses (landfill and waste recycling facilities) along the northwestern side of the site, the site is predominantly surrounded by vacant industrial land,” a council report noted.

“Part of WMI’s existing wood mulching and composting manufacturing facility … is within the proposed use area.

“The future Ipswich-Springfield transport corridor is approximately 300m to the south of the propose use area and Centenary Highway adjoins this transport corridor.”

The plant will produce about 240,600 tonnes of pre-mixed concrete a year.

“The facility will receive aggregates (coarse and fine) and other raw materials which will be stored in storage bins,” the council document noted.

“The batching plant (concrete mixing silos) combines cement, cementitious materials, aggregate, admixtures and water to produce concrete prior to being loaded into agitator trucks for delivery off-site.

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“The use area is located in an industrial area with the nearest potential future residential uses (within Future Urban zone) located at least 650 metres from the use area.

“The development site is located within an area that is subject to the Temporary Local Planning Instrument (TLPI) No. 1 of 2020 – Waste Activity Regulation.

“The proposal does not trigger assessment against the TLPI as the proposed use is not classified as a waste activity under the definitions of the TLPI.”

The plant forms part of a wider masterplan by the applicant for the area, which includes a garden centre, landscape supply depot, a compost manufacturing and biogas facility, service station, two fast food premises and up to five cafe/restaurant/takeaway food premises.

“Council is currently assessing (these) development applications over adjoining land that is currently owned by the same applicant,” the report noted.

The council received one properly made submission about the development during the public notification period.

Read more stories by Lachlan McIvor here.