Campbellfield factory fire: Waste lingers at site months after massive blaze
A deadline to clear and remove any risks to “human health and the environment” at the site of a toxic fire at Campbellfield, has been ignored by administrators.
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Waste from a toxic fire in Melbourne’s north will linger at the site despite clean up orders by the environmental watchdog.
Exploding barrels of burning waste were sent flying into the sky when a catastrophic inferno broke out at Bradbury Industrial Services in Campbellfield in April.
Bradbury was placed into external administration in July and accounting firm PKF appointed as administrator.
But the Herald Sun can reveal the deadline was missed after PKF asked for an extension on the clean-up notice set by the Environmental Protection Authority that demanded all structures and wastes from the site were removed by yesterday.
EPA Director of Emergency Management Duncan Pendrigh said at the time the notice was issued the site needed to be cleared to remove any risks to “human health and the environment”.
Unburned hazardous goods have been removed but demolition waste, infrastructure damaged in the fire and fire waste products remains.
A spokeswoman for the EPA said: “EPA has kept in regular contact with the administrators and understands that progress with the clean-up is delayed. The administrators understand the importance of the clean-up and EPA will continue monitor progress and enforce requirements as appropriate.”
EPA has two notices on the Bradbury site – a clean up notice relating to the fire and a Pollution Abatement Notice about stormwater controls.
The EPA warned it could take action if the site was not cleaned.
“If the Clean Up Notice is not compiled with, EPA will not hesitate to take action in line with the Compliance and Enforcement policy,” the spokeswoman said.
In August PKF sought to keep Bradbury in administration and not go into liquidation partly because the company was co-operating with the Andrews Government with the clean-up and said liquidation could threaten that.
A spokesman for the Administrator said: “Bradbury Industrial Services entered voluntary administration in July 2019 due to solvency issues. Since then, the Administrator has been working with the insurers of Bradbury Industrial Services regarding a number of insurance claims.
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The outcome of these claims remains unknown and an extension of time with the EPA has been requested.”
A worker at the Campbellfield factory Vignesh Varatharaja was injured when a chemical drum blew up and burned his face, throat and shoulder.
The devastating fire took more than 100 firefighters days to put out.
WorkSafe and coronial investigations into the fire are ongoing.