Defence contractor Veolia begins dumping of PFAS contaminated earth at Arriga

The military has revealed new information about the cartage of PFAS contaminated earth from Townsville to the Tablelands amid anger from some locals who don't want toxic chemicals in their backyard.

A Rembind image showing the remediation of PFAS contaminated earth in 2019. Picture: Rembind

The Department of Defence has revealed new information about the cartage of PFAS contaminated earth from Townsville to the Atherton Tablelands amid anger from some locals who don't want toxic chemicals in their backyard.

Thousands of truck movements have been authorised in efforts to shift recently removed legacy waste stockpiles with low levels of PFAS contamination from Lavarack Barracks to free up land for future development.

This work was completed on July 13 and is not related to the 1500 tonnes of PFAS contaminated soil taken from the Royal Australian Airforce Base in Townsville and dumped at the Springmount Waste Management Facility in 2019.

The Springmount site at Arriga had been prepared to receive the contaminated soil with a high level of environmental controls but Malanda Real Estate agent Pat Reynolds questioned the decision to make the Atherton Tablelands a toxic dumping ground.

Unmarked trucks and dogs have been moving up the Palmerston Highway en route to Arriga. Picture: John Andersen

“It beggars belief that they can’t find somewhere near Townsville to dump it,” he said.

“The simple question to ask is ‘Why the hell does it has to come up here’, there is a lot of semidesert county that does not leech like the county we have up here.

“(And if there was a crash) it would be a real problem and let’s hope that doesn’t happen.”

In 2019 PFAS remediation company Rembind announced a contract to treat the toxic earth with a powdered product that permanently binds PFAS to surrounding material to prevent leaching using a technology developed in partnership with the CSIRO.

A Rembind image showing remediation of PFAS contaminated earth at the Springmount Waste Management Facility in 2019. Picture: Rembind

Mareeba Shire Council Mayor Angela Toppin said the Arriga facility was licensed through the Department of Environment and Science to dispose of contaminated waste in a strictly controlled process.

“This facility is the only one in Far North Queensland that has the permission and proper protections in place to process this waste,” she said.

Malanda Chamber of Commerce president Gail Barton was largely unconcerned outside of the safety of schoolchildren crossing the highway.

Locals have reported up to 80 trucks per day through Malanda laden with PFAS riddled earth Picture: John Andersen

“It not forever, it’s just an interim period and they couldn’t do it closer to Townsville because dumping it down there could impact the reef,” she said.

The toxic chemicals were found in surface water at the Townsville RAAF Base in 2018 at concentrations above the nominated health and environment guidelines.

While some have defended the dumping of toxic chemicals historically used in firefighting foam to suppress flammable liquid fires, Mr Reynolds said the clandestine nature of the operation had residents anxious.

“The truck drivers have been told to not talk to anyone about it,” he said.

“The Tablelands public needs to know what’s going on, if there was an environmental audit on the process would struggle to stack up.

“We are in real trouble with the Tablelands being a big agricultural area and we have these things going on.”

The transport of soil from Lavarack Barracks to Springmount was completed by Defence contractor Veolia.

According to the Veolia website the international company designs and deploys decarbonising and depolluting solutions for municipal and industrial customers.

In 2020 the Department of Defence released a plan for tackling water management at Lavarack Barracks after it was found water at the facility is contaminated and has spread throughout the community.

From the 70s to the early 2000s the ADF regularly conducted firefighting drills at the site using a type of foam known as Aqueous Film Forming Foam.

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Originally published as Defence contractor Veolia begins dumping of PFAS contaminated earth at Arriga