The demand for development-ready land surrounding most Australian capital cities is incredibly high – particularly amid a housing crisis. Whether it be for commercial or residential purposes, re-zoning underutilised or vacant parcels of land is a smart way to meet demand and reduce urban sprawl.
Repurposing former petrochemical, industrial and semi-rural land is now common and often requires environmental remediation. You’d be surprised how often underground (or above ground) tanks used to store fuel, gas, oil, pharmaceuticals or other hazardous materials are found on these types of properties.
Industrial Environmental has found redundant tanks in many locations, including former petrol stations, army barracks and industrial sites through to the back paddock on farms. They’ve either been left insitu for future use, were deemed too high risk at one stage to remove or simply illegally dumped.
None of this should cause concern or impact land value. Converting sites for medium to high-density housing or commercial buildings is still a profitable exercise for both landowners and developers, even with the cost of remediation.
Remediation solutions for industry, Government & property developers
The key to a successful project is to deploy innovative and commercially astute environmental remediation solutions that prepare land for re-use and address any contaminated soil from minor or major leaks.
Any number of soil remediation treatments can be deployed. The key is to respond to the unique requirements of each site, client and community.
Some common examples of treatments include immobilisation, thermal treatment, bioremediation, encapsulation, soil washing, soil vapour extraction, chemical oxidisation and neutralisation.
The selection of treatment(s) can be influenced by each client’s commercial, environment, reputation and regulatory requirements. A degree of agility is also required. Discovering the unexpected is common and requires adept problem-solving.
Ideally, you want to engage a full-service provider with deep experience in safely exhuming underground and above ground tanks, decommissioning any associated infrastructure in addition to remediating the surrounding land and groundwater. A full-service provider really proves their worth when the infrastructure has been insulated with asbestos.
A deep understanding of contaminants helps with safely emptying, cleaning, removal, treatment and recycling of liquid waste (be it petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, lubricating oils and greases, kerosene heating oil or LPG).
An experienced service provider knows how to deploy the most time, cost and environmentally efficient solutions, on any sized site, to both achieve the highest quality results and meet your unique site and soil requirements.
Expect the unexpected
When Melbourne’s inner Moonee Valley City Council decided to purchase a former petrol station and create a pocket park, it knew it needed to remediate the site.
Exhuming an estimated five steel petrol tanks expanded to 12 as work commenced. All tanks ranging from 1,000 – 10,000 litres in size, collectively weighing a total of five tonnes, were removed from the 371sqm site.
Due to the small footprint of the site which was bordered by electricity, gas, sewage and data infrastructure, traditional soil extraction wasn’t an option.
Contaminated soil was extracted by methodically drilling and backfilling the entire site, removing 1,450 tonnes of impacted soil and replacing it with a sand and cement mix for stability.
Why agility matters
When a major petroleum refiner and retailer wanted to decommission and exhume 32 underground petroleum storage systems (UPSS), it too found an additional three previously decommissioned tanks not included in the initial assessment or scope.
Each of the three additional tanks had been left instu and filled with cement stabilised sand. Despite being stabilised, orphaned tanks must be treated as a potentially explosive environment.
The risk of ignition was addressed by using a cold cutting hydraulic shear technique which allowed precision cutting of the metal components without the application of heat.
The insitu UPSS were safely processed using the specialised shearing attachment, side stepping any time or budget impacts from this unforeseen element to the project scope.
Land remediation beyond petrochemical tanks
Evidence of prior land use will often reside within soil. As previously indicated, always expect the unexpected. Engage environmental consultants to understand contaminants.
One developer in Victoria purchased a former car manufacturing plant with a view to creating a mixed-use commercial, industrial and retail precinct. Thanks to its former use as a car manufacturing plant, the site contained evidence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
Another Victorian developer preparing a former Defence site for a master plan residential community needed two former landfills containing mixed waste to be excavated and remediated. The soil was sifted to remove everything from old prams through to demolition rubbish.
Thanks to illegal dumping by external parties, an area of 30,000m3 also required asbestos abatement and reclassification.
Asbestos in soil
While the use of asbestos was banned within Australia in 2003, both friable and non-friable asbestos can still be found today across manufacturing, industrial and rural settings (above and below ground).
It’s uncovered in a multitude of legal (known) and illegal (unknown) contexts.
These can include anything from insulative layers wrapped around discarded pipes in a disused facility through to being mixed with other waste within public or private landfill.
Clients have found asbestos in land which was never intended for use as landfill, when preparing a brownfield site for development through to finding it in old dry creek beds on land still in use today.
Finding asbestos in soil has the potential to impact a project budget, particularly if it’s not managed, abated and/or removed by qualified and deeply experienced professionals.
Be sure to work with a specialist asbestos remediation company which holds a Class A Asbestos Removal License certification. This demonstrates expertise in comprehensive asbestos management from containment to disposal, ensuring the highest standards of worker and public safety.
There are typically two processes for addressing asbestos impacted sites. The first is physical remediation where specialists use equipment to safely separate the asbestos and asbestos containing material from soil. Separated materials are then disposed separately.
Additional time to abate impacted soil is offset by significant cost savings at the time of disposal. In circumstances where abatement is not possible, impacted soil can be excavated and safely loaded directly onto transportation, removed from site and back filled with clean soil.
Protect your peace of mind (and bottom line)
It goes without saying, remediation projects are bound by Australian Standards, statutory regulation and guidelines.
Be sure to ask your service provider about their accreditations. Also ask how they work with relevant authorities to ensure all planning requirements and approvals are in place to protect people, property and environment.
About Industrial Environmental
Industrial Environmental is an Australian-owned company that delivers innovative & commercially agile remediation solutions specifically tailored to the unique needs of its clients.
It offers nationwide coverage and a range services beyond petrochemical remediation, including asbestos abatement, contaminated soil and contaminated groundwater remediation through to hazardous waste management.
The team is both qualified and deeply experienced, enabling them to adapt core processes and solutions to any unforeseen challenge.
They not only possess a healthy respect for the work they do – they love what they do. That passion, together with a commitment to integrity, seamless collaboration and continuous improvement, leads to better outcomes for the environment, clients and the community.
For more information go to https://industrialenvironmental.com.au
