Toehold for compost plant

By Bridget Brady
ALTERED plans to build a compost plant in stages have done little to alleviate the concerns of nearby residents.
SITA Environmental Solutions last week gave way to mounting community pressure and announced changes to the size and type of waste in their plans to build the compost facility near the Hallam Road landfill site, which would be the first of its kind in Victoria.
In a letter to the Environment Protection Authority, SITA proposes to build a facility that takes in 60,000 tonnes of garden waste per year, rather than the 180,000 tonnes of household and green waste initially suggested.
SITA said it still hoped to build the remainder of the plant down the track.
“In order to build confidence in SITA’s capabilities to operate such facilities, SITA believes that a staged approach to the construction of the facility is now warranted,” the letter stated.
Some residents have expressed their anxiety about the compost plant, and the odours from the Hallam Road landfill that SITA already manages.
Hampton Park resident Tony O’Hara said the new tactic was “sneaky”.
“It’s just leg in the door to get the plant in place,” Mr O’Hara said.
“I think it’s a sneaky move to get it passed the people that are mainly objecting about the smell.”
David Banner from Cranbourne said he agreed it was like the “thin edge of the wedge”.
“To me, it’s very deceptive,” Mr Banner said.
“All they’ve done is modify their approach to get exactly the same results.”
A spokesperson for the EPA said SITA had put its current application with the EPA on hold and would review and resubmit the application at a later date.
SITA did not respond to the News before it went to print.