The Victoria state environmental watchdog says it will take the owners of the Stawell dump to court to recover almost $6 million spent eliminating the massive fire hazard. The final tyres were removed from the notorious Stawell dump in mid October, two months after the Environmental Protection Authority took control of the site.
Legal Action Launched to Finalise Bill
At one point, the stockpile was estimated to hold 9 million tyres and was one of the largest dumps in the world. It took 380 truckloads to move the 9500 tonnes of tyres, the EPA said, most of which were shredded for use as fuel. However, 3500 tonnes of tyres couldn’t be recycled and will end up in landfill.
The cost of the clean-up has been put at close to $6 million and the EPA said it would launch legal action to force the owners to pay for it.
Source: The Stawell tyre yard after the clean-up effort. Photo: EPA
