Panel to assess Brookland Greens

AN INDEPENDENT panel of experts will look into how the State Government can implement the recommendations of the Ombudsman’s report into the Brookland Greens fiasco.
Liberal MP for South Eastern Metropolitan Region Inga Peulich presented the notice of motion in Victorian Parliament last week to create the independent panel and the Legislative Council passed and accepted the motion voting 21 to 19.
Ms Peulich said she was disappointed all 19 Labor members of the Legislative Council voted against the motion.
She said it was to the detriment of affected Brookland Greens residents and the Casey and Frankston communities.
“Today’s debate was an opportunity to hear from the key ministers…they failed to speak,” Ms Peulich said.
Ombudsman George Breuwer last month released his report about the methane gas leaks at the Stevensons Road landfill that caused some Brookland Greens residents to evacuate their homes in September last year.
The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) was strongly criticised in the report, with Mr Breuwer saying the authority missed several warning signs at the landfill.
The motion that was passed included establishing an independent panel to respond to the failures in policy, governance and management involving the EPA and other Victorian State Government agencies. It will also address the issues of liability for cost of rectification and on-going monitoring of the landfill and possible compensation.
Casey council, which was also criticised in the Ombudsman report, has called on the State Government to provide $35.6 million to help ease its financial burden given it relied on the expert advice of State Government authorities during the debacle.