NSW will lead a crackdown on illegal tyre dumping, as a tyre dump site in Sydney’s west - part-owned by business identity Ron Medich - was slapped with a clean-up order.
The Smithfield site, run by Carbon Polymers, contains tens of thousands of used tyres, but has no permit for more than 5000.
NSW will hold a summit on November 27 with industry and recycling groups to address the problem of ballooning stockpiles of used tyres, which can become an environmental and fire hazard. Victoria’s Environmental Protection Authority will be among those attending.
”The NSW government takes the issue of the illegal storage and disposal of waste tyres very seriously,” NSW Environment Minister Robyn Parker said.
“The burning of tyres emits toxic fumes harmful to our health, run-off from fire water can pollute waterways, and stockpiled waste tyres also pose a fire risk.”
NSW Fire & Rescue said NSW had 256 tyre blazes over the past five years. Victoria is planning to join the crackdown on the storage of discard tyres, with inspections by the EPA, fire and other authorities ”imminent”, said Katrina Mckenzie, director of strategic relations at the authority.
NSW requires a limit on storage of more than 50 tonnes, or 5000 passenger car tyres. Victoria, which has no such limits, will have to resort to regulations on how tyres are stored, such as spacing between rows to limit fire risk, as the focus of its clampdown. Victoria is also negotiating with tyre recycler Green Distillation Technologies Corp to take control of a huge dump at Stawell in the state’s west.
GDT chief executive Craig Dunn said the firm would need at least five years - and some financial support - to remove the stockpile estimated at as many as 9 million passenger-tyre equivalents on the site of the failed Motorway Tyres company. “It is staggering,” Mr Dunn said. The EPA “is working to provide some sort of solution by the end of this year”, he said.
The company is also planning a site to recycle about 650,000 tyres a year at Warren in central NSW.
Bill Graham, a former national sales manager for Carbon Polymers, said the locks had been changed late on Monday as the owner, Dr Kee Wong, took back control of the site.
Mr Graham also contacted police after 100 litres of sump oil were left outside the plant where a fire started on October 20, not far from the tyre stacks. ”It’s very odd that it’s been left there,” he said.
Mr Medich, who is facing trial for his alleged role in the 2009 murder of former partner and standover man, Michael McGurk - is a part-owner of Carbon Polymers.
