Sydney sites where asbestos-contaminated mulch has been found

A Sydney mayor has accused mulch suppliers of making an “arrogant” statement in regards to its responsibility in the asbestos saga. It comes as a major Mardi Gras event set for this weekend has been cancelled.

A Sydney mayor has called on mulch supplier Greenlife to retract an “arrogant” denial of responsibility for Sydney’s growing asbestos crisis, offering up his council’s parks to save a major Mardi Gras event.

Greenlife Resource Recovery Facility, the mulch manufacturer linked to 22 locations around NSW where asbestos has been found in recently placed mulch, told The Daily Telegraph through their lawyer that the company was being “unfairly maligned” over the saga.

GRRF’s lawyer Ross Fox, Principal of Fishburn Watson O’Brien, yesterday said the contamination is “not my client’s problem”, a phrase Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne described as “the height of arrogance”, and “disrespectful” to the public.

“Such an arrogant statement from the company is on par with Scott Morrison not holding a hose,” Mr Byrne said.

“I am not going to pre-empt the findings of the Environmental Protection Authority’s investigation, and neither should Greenlife.”

Inner West mayor Darcy Byrne. Picture: Damian Shaw

The mayor also offered up the Inner West’s parks to be made available to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras at short notice, after asbestos-contaminated mulch forced organisers to pull the plug on one of the festival’s major events.

The City of Sydney and Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras on Wednesday morning announced that their Fair Day event, to be held in Victoria Park this Sunday, will be cancelled.

Mardi Gras CEO Gil Beckwith said she appreciated the offer to relocate, but the logistics of moving an event attended by over 70,000 people each year would prove impossible.

“We appreciate all the offers we’ve received to host Fair Day in other parks and venues,” she said.

“However, putting on an event the size of Fair Day takes many months of planning, logistics and co-ordinating of stakeholders – something that is just not possible to arrange during the next 17 days.

“We will continue to work with all stakeholders to explore what’s possible in the future.”

An attendee of the Mardi Gras Fair Day event in 2023. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Earlier, Lord Mayor of Sydney Clover Moore said the decision to cancel the event was “incredibly disappointing”.

“Fair Day is a pivotal part of the Mardi Gras calendar. But we have to put the safety of our community first,” she said.

“We will continue to work with Mardi Gras once the asbestos issue is resolved. Today’s decision underscores how serious this is. This NSW Government and the EPA must make sure this never happens again.”

“It breaks our heart to see this Sunday not go ahead, but given the safety concerns we must put our communities’ wellbeing first,” Ms Beckwith said.

Sunday’s Fair Day event in Victoria Park will be cancelled. Picture: Richard Dobson

It comes as more asbestos was discovered near along the Parramatta light rail, in mulch at Telopea.

Meanwhile, the City of Sydney has been slammed for waiting 12 hours before roping off a busy park after finding out it contained asbestos, as incidents of contamination spread through the city.

Harmony Park in Surry Hills is one of three inner city parks where asbestos has been discovered, along with Victoria Park in Glebe and Belmore Park in Haymarket, with council to test 32 more parks where a contaminated product “may have been used”.

The Environmental Protection Authority says they have found contaminated mulch at 22 sites across Sydney, all linked with the same supplier Greenlife Resource Recovery Facility (GRRF), since asbestos was first found in a park in Rozelle a month ago.

The company has now launched a legal challenge against a prevention order stopping it selling its products and denies being the source of the contaminated mulch.

The City of Sydney was first told there might be a contamination risk at the three inner city parks last week.

Asbestos was found in mulch at the Rozelle Parklands. Picture: NCA NewsWire

The sites were tested and the results came back on Monday night, but the parks were still open to the public early on Tuesday morning.

The Daily Telegraph can reveal that council that friable asbestos had been found at Harmony Park 12 hours before the area was fenced off.

Lawyer Ross Fox.

Premier Chris Minns.

City of Sydney CEO Monica Barone emailed councillors at 9.16pm on Monday advising them that asbestos had been found at three parks.

Ms Barone told councillors that “immediate fencing” would be installed.

The fencing was not erected until Tuesday morning at 9am.

Local resident Karl Robertson arrived at the park for a regular workout with friends at 8.30am.

Harmony Park in Surry Hills has been fenced off after a dangerous form of asbestos was detected in recycled mulch.

The group was given 40 minutes to continue their training session, after which point they were forced to move across the road.

Mr Robertson said he’s “aware of the health implications of asbestos exposure” but he’s not worried about it.

“It probably should be more of a concern than it is.”

Asbestos diseases foundation of Australia President Barry Robson said the council should have put up fences as soon as they were told to test for asbestos, rather than waiting for results to come back.

Harmony Park in Surry Hills was fenced off at 9am on Tuesday morning after asbestos was discovered on Monday night.

“It only takes that one fibre to lodge in your lung and then it’s goodnight nurse,” Mr Robson said.

Experts are also disturbed the workers closing down Harmony Park on Tuesday morning were not wearing any protective equipment.

Asbestosis and Mesothelioma Association of Australia director Kimberley Crawford described the absence of PPE as “really shocking” and unsafe.

“They’ve put themselves at enormous risk” she said.

Asbestos has now been found in mulch at 21 sites across Sydney. Picture by Max Mason-Hubers

The City of Sydney has not confirmed if they told workers they needed to wear protective gear and if staff knew they were dealing with asbestos.

GRRF’s lawyer Ross Fox, Principal of Fishburn Watson O’Brien, said the contamination is “not my client’s problem”, and that his client was being “unfairly maligned and blamed for … a problem that has dogged the Sydney construction industry for years”.

The EPA tested mulch at the company’s site in January and found no contamination.

Meanwhile, Liverpool West Public School will remain closed to students on Wednesday as the EPA, Department of Education and expert hygienists work to make its playground safe from asbestos.

Friable asbestos was found at Harmony Park.

A single piece of bonded asbestos was found in a garden bed in a newly upgraded playground at the southwest Sydney school on Sunday night.

It was linked to the same recycled mulch manufacturer who supplied to 22 other contaminated sites across the city.

The school was initially shut down for two days, but will remain closed until at least Thursday while “further work” is carried out, a Department of Education spokesman said.

“There has been no additional asbestos discovery at Liverpool West Public School,” he said.

“The school campus had been on track to reopen on Wednesday following a two-day closure. We will now work towards reopening the school on Thursday, February 15.

“The Department continues to work with EPA officers and an accredited hygienist to ensure all garden mulch is removed from the school and replaced with clean, unrecycled mulch.”