Jordan Doherty
The Barro Group’s licence to operate the Sunshine Landfill has been cancelled by the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).
The EPA announced its decision to cancel the licence in a statement to residents on Wednesday, January 11. The statement said the licence would be formally cancelled on February 1.
The decision means Barro can no longer accept waste at the landfill.
The licence cancellation follows the EPA’s decision to suspend Barro’s licence on September 13, 2021.
The EPA said the decision to cancel the licence followed assessment of information Barro Group provided in response to a show cause notice issued by EPA on October 28, 2022.
The EPA said it received a preliminary report from lawyers acting for Barro in late December which stated that an additional 90,000 – 100,000 cubic metres of material may need to be excavated to extinguish the final hotspot, which could take an additional 12 – 18 months.
”This new information from Barro Group contradicts earlier advice given in October 2022 to EPA, you and your community that works to extinguish the remaining hotspot was about 90 per cent done, with completion expected by the end of 2022,” the EPA statement read.
“EPA has issued a notice to investigate to the company to get more information about this latest development. We expect Barro Group to explain itself to the local community and have made this clear to them. We are also examining what legal options and avenues are available to us given this latest information.”
The community has been calling for action to be taken since four underground fires started in November 2019.
Resident Nicole Power welcomed the licence cancellation but said she was disappointed the fires would not be extinguished any time soon.
Brimbank councillor Virginia Tachos, who lives in the area, said the community had suffered mentally and physically from the fires.
The licence cancellation has also been welcomed by Brimbank council.
“At last, there has been decisive action on this issue. This is a win for the environment, local residents and the broader Victorian community, although the cost to the environment and the health of local residents is profound. Recovery will however, take significant time and resources,” mayor Bruce Lancashire said.
The EPA will hold a community information session on Tuesday, January 17 at Kealba Community Centre, 24 McShane Drive, Kealba, with residents able to drop-in any time between 4-7pm.
Barro Group was contacted for comment.
