Following a sustained community campaign, toxic sludge from the construction of Sydney’s Northern Beaches link will not be dumped in Newcastle.
In November 2021, Transport for NSW documents revealed that 12,000 cubic metres of toxic sludge were to be disposed of in Newcastle.
The sludge dug up during the North Sydney infrastructure project contained lead, mercury, silver, zinc, PFAS chemicals and dioxins.
NSW Labor said it appeared that plans by Transport for NSW and the State Government to settle the dredged sludge in Newcastle were made without widespread community consultation.
The community only became aware of the Government’s plan to dump the chemical sludge in Newcastle when a report was published at the closure of that consultation period.
Newcastle community backlash was immediate, with 15,000 people signing a Parliament of NSW ePetition against the move.
NSW Shadow Minister for Roads John Graham took the Government and department to task on the proposal in Budget Estimates hearings.
Graham said Newcastle had plenty of industrial waste of its own and didn’t need 12,000 cubic metres of sludge shipped in from the Sydney Harbour.
“This sediment is hard to dispose of safely because it contains two centuries of lead, mercury, copper, silver, zinc and also contains PFAS, tributyltin and dioxins,” he said.
“The fact that this toxic sludge has to be barged so far raises serious questions about the whole operation.”
Under the NSW Government’s initial proposal, the material was to be processed on a barge in Middle Harbour before heading to Newcastle.
The waste would remain in the barge until being loaded into trucks and taken to a suitably licensed waste facility such as Summerhill Waste Management Centre or Cleanaway Beresfield Newcastle.
On March 1, Transport for NSW Deputy Secretary, Infrastructure and Place Camilla Drover stated that the sludge would not be transported to Newcastle.
Instead, the sludge would be barged to a location near the area’s Spit Bridge, then taken to an accredited facility in Sydney chosen by the contractor.
State Member for Newcastle Tim Crakanthorp said he was thrilled with the decision.
“This proposal should never have been on the table,” he said.
“The pushback to this ludicrous plan was fierce and rightly so. Newcastle is not Sydney’s dumping ground, and we should not take their waste while they get the infrastructure.”
Hayley McMahon