Queensland government launches legal action against Southern Downs Regional Council over contaminated soil at school

Contaminated topsoil distributed at a Warwick school and football oval six years ago could cost Southern Downs Regional Council more than $500k. Full details here.

Southern Downs Regional Council could see a budget blow out of more than $500,000 with the state government launching legal action years after it claims asbestos-contaminated mulch was used on school grounds and sporting fields.

The Queensland government filed a claim in Brisbane District Court against El-Paso Farms, as a third-party contractor, and Southern Downs Regional Council in December 2023.

El-Paso Farms is being sued for breach of contract and breach of statutory guarantee for their role in supplying topsoil later found to have traces of asbestos contaminated mulch to Warwick Central State School in December 2017, the documents said.

Southern Downs Regional Council is being sued for damages for negligence in their public supply of asbestos contaminated mulch, purchased by El-Paso Farms from the Allora Waste Transfer Facility, the documents said.

The documents claim the mulch used by the third-party contractor to form the topsoil was sourced from Allora Waste Facility and was found to contain asbestos contaminated material.

It’s undetermined from the documents whether El-Paso Farms had any knowledge of the contamination.

The discovery came to light in 2018 and saw Workplace Health and Safety Queensland test more than six sites around the region for asbestos contaminated soil.

Asbestos consultants contracted by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland performed soil tests on the oval and playground area at Warwick Central State School in August 2018.

Shortly after the discovery WHSQ issued Southern Downs council a notice to stop all supply of mulch to the public from the Allora facility.

While the court documents state a small penny was paid to the contractor for the topsoil, the total clean up cost and damages sought by the state government total more than $585,000.

A Workplace Health and Safety spokesman told the Daily News during the 2018 investigations the contaminated soil was of such a “low risk” it was considered “negligible”.

The court documents further reveal the state government claims Southern Downs council had knowledge of the presence of asbestos contaminated materials at different sites around the Allora facility from as early as 2010.

The state government’s claim of negligence and breach of a duty of care against council alleges that it failed to take steps to test the mulch at the Allora facility for asbestos material before supplying it to the public, the documents said.

The sporting fields were among a number of locations in the region that were later identified to have traces of asbestos contaminated soil.

Data released by the Queensland government in 2023 revealed asbestos had been located at more than a dozen Darling Downs schools in the 2022 calendar year.

An alarming 575 incidents were identified across 287 schools according to the data.

Southern Downs Regional Council declined to comment on the claims, while attempts were made to contact El-Paso Farms but were unsuccessful.