Thursday 22nd April 2021

Safety News Update: Thursday 22nd April 2021

Today's roundup covers two significant developments affecting Victoria's workplace safety landscape: a growing asbestos disposal crisis tied to the state's construction boom, and a community memorial honouring workers lost to a fatal workplace accident.

Building Boom in Victoria Leads to Massive Asbestos Disposal Challenge

Victoria's construction boom is driving asbestos disposal volumes toward a projected 310,000 tonnes annually by the end of the decade, up from the current 178,000 tonnes handled each year, according to the state government's latest Asbestos Disposal Management plan.

A post-COVID surge in housing construction and major infrastructure projects has left specialists warning that finding and removing asbestos from soil and buildings remains an escalating problem. This hazardous material is increasingly turning up in schools and renovated homes, doubling workloads for remediation teams across the state.

Substantial investment flowing into new development sites across Melbourne's north and west is compounding matters, as many of these sites sit on former landfill grounds.

Dale Smith, managing director of environmental consulting firm SCAADA, said vital projects would face delays and cost blowouts due to asbestos contamination in soil.

"The old method was just to bury it in a hole but now that storage capacity has started to close up," he said.

Only 21 landfills across the entire state currently accept asbestos, and this number could shrink to just seven locations over the next 30 years.

"The longer this stuff is buried there's a risk the soil around it becomes contaminated … Soil remediation is going to be the next frontier of the asbestos issue. The smart developers and builders are taking that on board because it significantly delays their projects."

New technology now allows specialist companies to separate asbestos and other toxic materials from soil, helping builders avoid landfill-related delays that have previously stalled major projects.

Read the full story on the Herald Sun website.

Ballarat Community Pays Tribute to Fallen Workers and Their Families

A memorial commemorating two men who tragically lost their lives in a workplace accident has received a $50,000 contribution from the Labor Government.

Families of the deceased have tirelessly campaigned for stronger workplace safety measures since the accident occurred in 2018, advocacy that helped shape the Labor Government's landmark workplace manslaughter laws.

These laws, which took effect in July 2020, make workplace manslaughter a criminal offence carrying tough new penalties, including fines of up to $16.5 million for companies and up to 25 years in jail for individuals found guilty of negligence as employers.

Criteria defining a workplace death have also broadened to cover work-related transport incidents, industrial disease, criminal acts, and medical or suicide incidents, meaning more families affected by loss of loved ones can now access support services.

"One workplace death is one too many. We must continue to work closely with workers and families to prevent tragedies like this from occurring so that every worker can come home from work safely at the end of each date," stated Minister for Workplace Safety Ingrid Stitt.

Read the full story on the Mirage News website.

Related Safety News

• Thursday 15th April 2021 — catch up on last week's safety industry updates
• Thursday 8th April 2021 — earlier coverage of workplace safety developments
• Thursday 29th April 2021 — the following week's roundup of industry news