Pymble: Court orders former residential drug lab to be cleaned-up over contamination fears

The discovery of a drug lab operating out of a suburban home on Sydney’s north shore has sparked concerns over human health risks and “excessive contamination” from methamphetamine.

The discovery of a drug lab operating out of a suburban home on Sydney’s north shore has sparked concerns over human health risks and “excessive contamination” from methamphetamine.

The Land and Environment Court has set a 90 day deadline for the property in Pymble to be remediated to address health risks from its former use as a clandestine drug laboratory.

The court order follows more than two-years of efforts by Ku-ring-gai Council to have the owner of the property clean-up the site.

In 2019, NSW Police issued a ‘clandestine drug laboratory notification’ which advised the council an illegal drug laboratory had been operating at the site.

The notification followed a police inspection of the home where officers removed hazardous chemicals and other contaminated materials, namely methamphetamine.

The police notification stated there was likelihood that substances within the property could cause harm to health and safety – therefore requiring the owner to ensure it was suitable for occupation.

The measures required assessing and remediating the property within a two year deadline, expiring in 2021.

But when the order was not complied with by 2021, Ku-ring-gai Council lodged an appeal to the Land and Environment Court for the clean-up order to be followed.

Lawyers for the council told the court an inspection of the home identified “excessive contamination of methamphetamine throughout the property” along with amphetamine contamination, and contamination discovered in the property’s drain lines.

The court heard the council had made multiple attempts to assist the owner to understand his obligations under the order and what was required of it.

The owner did not appear at the Land and Environment Court hearing on Friday.

Land and Environment Court Commissioner Tim Moore, in his decision, said evidence to the court demonstrated there was no valid reason why the owner had failed to carry out the clean-up required by the council.

The court ordered measures outlined in the remediation order to be complied with within a 90 day deadline.

The order also requires an experienced professional, such as an occupational hygienist, to confirm the property has been remediated.