REMEDIATING FORMER SERVICE STATION SITES

Environmental remediation strategies should take into account the environmental impact of the actual remediation operations, including the impact on air quality, water quality, noise levels and waste management.

Priority Environmental Outcomes

The EPA has identified the following priority environmental outcomes:

• improvement in air quality to protect public health and amenity
• improvement in inland water quality, including groundwater, in both urban and rural areas, acknowledging the value of our waterways to public health, ecosystem sustainability and economic development
• minimisation of noise in urban and rural areas
• reduced volume and toxicity of waste that requires landfill or treatment, including solid waste and hazardous substances
• improved disposal and/or recycling of waste.

The Clean Air Act 196

Section 19 of the Clean Air Act 1961, which applies to premises not scheduled under the Act, states that the occupier of any premises shall conduct any business or activity ‘in or on such premises by such practicable means as may be necessary to prevent or minimise air pollution’. Premises scheduled under this Act are bound by Section 15A which prohibits the emission of any odour from these premises. Section 16 of the Clean Waters Act 1970 prohibits unlicensed contaminated discharges to surface or groundwaters.

Separate phase products must be contained and removed from the site, the site assessor should talk to the nearest Regional Office of the EPA about disposal procedures. Any separate phase product should be fully documented in the Site Assessment Report.

Source: © State of New South Wales through the Office of Environment and Heritage
Guidelines for assessing service station sites

Australian Enviro Services are a asbestos removal company in Sydney. They also offer professional waste management and contaminated soil remediation.