The waste facility at the center of the growing asbestos contamination scandal was previously the subject of multiple asbestos contamination incidents.
The Bringelly site, in Sydney’s southwest, has been the subject of four cleanup notices issued by the Environmental Protection Authority.
The site was not owned by Greenlife Resource Recovery at the time.
The New South Wales government has fingered Greenlife as the alleged source of asbestos-contaminated mulch that has been spread across New South Wales.
The hazardous material has been detected at more than 30 sites, including in the topsoil of schools, hospitals and parks stretching from the CBD to Emu Plains at the foot of the Blue Mountains, and from Parramatta to Campbelltown.
Asbestos was found in two more schools overnight, with Penrith Christian School, in Orchard Hills, and St Luke’s Catholic College, in Marsden Park, on the list.
Daily Mail Australia witnessed a potentially contaminated site cordoned off in Surry Hills and the manager of a local pub said they were unaware of the situation.
Each of the asbestos-contaminated sites has been traced to The Greenlife Resource Recovery Facility at Bringelly, south-west Syndey (pictured), but the company denies responsibility.
On Saturday afternoon, Daily Mail Australia witnessed another possible site of asbestos contamination at a busy intersection in Surry Hills, where red tape and signs warning “possible asbestos” blocked several flower beds (pictured) .
The affected mulch reportedly traces back to the Bringelly waste facility.
The EPA issued the four cleanup notices when the site was not owned by Greenlife, and the company did not take possession of it until 2022, after taking over the lease from another waste processing company, Hi-Quality Waste Management.
In 2016, officers discovered asbestos fragments, along with pieces of plastic, asphalt, concrete and bricks, mixed with natural soil and rocks.
The last incident occurred in 2020, when asbestos was found mixed with 8,450 square meters of waste material, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
New South Wales Environment Minister Penny Sharpe told the newspaper the EPA was carrying out one of the largest investigations in its history as the number of possible contamination sites continues to grow.
“There is clearly a problem and a regulatory gap in terms of how asbestos got there,” he said.
‘It shouldn’t be there. It’s illegal for it to be there. I want the EPA to get to the bottom of this investigation.’
Tracking down all the contaminated mulch is a monumental task that involves combining supply chain data, CCTV footage and truck records.
EPA staff reportedly believe the work is more than 90 percent complete, but the investigation could still take months to complete.
The compost pile at the Bringelly site is closed while the investigation continues.
The owners of Greenlife, who bought the plant from another waste company, Hi-Quality Waste Management, in 2022, previously told Daily Mail Australia they were baffled by the scandal as the Environmental Protection Authority had allegedly given their site a certificate of good health (EPA)
The shift manager at the Evening Star Hotel (pictured) said: “No one said anything, they didn’t give us any information about it.”
But there are reportedly no test results showing the presence of asbestos in the plant’s mulch between March and December of last year.
Greenlife said samples of mulch taken from its site during the relevant period were analyzed and found to contain no asbestos.
‘There are media reports suggesting [that] because [Greenlife] is the common source, then it must be responsible for the asbestos contamination. “This is incorrect,” a spokesperson said.
The company said there are several different sites where its mulch is handled and it could have been contaminated after leaving the site.
“Many of the sites to which mulch is delivered are rehabilitated sites, meaning that asbestos was buried at those sites many decades ago,” the spokesperson added.
Greenlife CEO Domenic Vitocco said he was concerned about the impact of the scandal on Sydneysiders.
“We are very concerned, like everyone else, about the discovery of asbestos in even a single location, let alone multiple locations, and the impact it is having on the people of Sydney,” he said.
Greenlife CEO Domenic Vitocco said he was concerned about the impact of the scandal on Sydneysiders.
A Greenlife spokesperson said: “The site was the subject of comprehensive clean-up and remediation works, which were overseen by the New South Wales Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).
‘Repair works included covering the site and installing a resistant material.
“The cleanup and remediation work was accepted by EPA before GRRF began operations.”
The detection of asbestos at two more schools brings to 34 the total number of sites that tested positive for the hazardous material.
Department of Education Secretary Murat Dizdar said on Sunday that four more schools were still awaiting results, including Doremy School in Five Dock, Edmondson Park Public School, St Michael’s Catholic Primary School in Daceyville and Christian Secondary School. Westmead.
Greenlife’s owners previously told Daily Mail Australia they were baffled by the scandal as the EPA had supposedly given their site a clean bill of health.
“We feel like we’ve been made a scapegoat,” Vitocco said.
‘We’re not quite sure how this happened.
‘All EPA tests have come back clean from our backyard. Our tests have come back clear and we are a little baffled as to how this is all happening.