ID :
19246
Fri, 09/12/2008 - 19:43
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https://oananews.org//node/19246
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Methane residents consider legal action
A developer has denied responsibility for exposing families to potentially explosive levels of methane gas as residents of the affected Melbourne housing estate consider legal action. The developer of the Brookland Greens estate in Cranbourne rejected suggestions it should not have developed the land next to a former tip which is leaking dangerous levels of methane gas.
Peet Ltd boss Brendan Gore said the company had met all planning requirements since it purchased the land in 1998. "Peet has undertaken all development in accordance with the appropriate planning and development approvals processes," Mr Gore said in a statement. "These have included approvals from the City of Casey for the stages of the estate nearest the landfill site."
Mr Gore said the firm was concerned for residents' safety and was boosting security patrols to allay fears residents may have about leaving their homes. Peet owns the third largest land bank of all Australian stock exchange listed companies, worth an estimated $6.13 billion.
The company recently reported an after tax annual profit of $47.9 million. The sealed tip in Melbourne's outer-east is leaching methane gas into the estate at levels high enough to cause explosions.
Hundreds of residents have been advised the safest option is to move and have been warned methane levels may not be safe for a year.
Denise Hartland, 28, said she and her partner, who have a seven-month-old daughter, felt they could not leave their house for fear it would be broken into. "We could go and stay with family members, that's not a problem, but we don't want to just pack up and leave our house," Ms Hartland said. "We'd love to move out and leave the estate altogether and never come back, but we can't sell our house because it's worth nothing now, no one will want to buy it, no one will even want to rent it from us."
The local council, the City of Casey, and the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) objected in 2002 to the last stage of the development in the area next to the tip, which closed in 2005. But that objection was overturned in 2004 by the Victorian Civil and Administrative
Tribunal (VCAT) which ruled the buffer zone between houses and landfill be reduced from 500 metres to 200 metres.
VCAT also ordered the 200m buffer could be progressively reduced as the tipping areas were completed, capped and gas extraction systems were installed.
Slater and Gordon lawyer Ben Hardwick said the law firm had received 30 inquiries from homeowners at the estate about class action against the council. Mr Hardwick said the Victorian government and Peet could also be targeted.
Emergency Services Minister Bob Cameron announced relocation grants of $8,500 available to residents, in addition to the $1,000 emergency grants announced on Thursday. But Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu said the government owed residents far more, considering they had poured more than $10 million in stamp duty into government coffers.
"The state government has received millions of dollars in stamp duty and land tax from this residential development, and (premier) John Brumby now needs to accept responsibility and set aside a significant amount of money to allow families to relocate," he said. "The Brumby government must also address the long term ramifications of ignoring
local planning advice."
Methane levels at the estate will not be considered safe for at least a year, EPA chairman Mick Bourke said. Mr Bourke said when the Cranbourne landfill was sited in the early 1990s, it was not required to be clay-lined to stop methane leaching, but new laws would not allow it to be built that way now.
Peet Ltd boss Brendan Gore said the company had met all planning requirements since it purchased the land in 1998. "Peet has undertaken all development in accordance with the appropriate planning and development approvals processes," Mr Gore said in a statement. "These have included approvals from the City of Casey for the stages of the estate nearest the landfill site."
Mr Gore said the firm was concerned for residents' safety and was boosting security patrols to allay fears residents may have about leaving their homes. Peet owns the third largest land bank of all Australian stock exchange listed companies, worth an estimated $6.13 billion.
The company recently reported an after tax annual profit of $47.9 million. The sealed tip in Melbourne's outer-east is leaching methane gas into the estate at levels high enough to cause explosions.
Hundreds of residents have been advised the safest option is to move and have been warned methane levels may not be safe for a year.
Denise Hartland, 28, said she and her partner, who have a seven-month-old daughter, felt they could not leave their house for fear it would be broken into. "We could go and stay with family members, that's not a problem, but we don't want to just pack up and leave our house," Ms Hartland said. "We'd love to move out and leave the estate altogether and never come back, but we can't sell our house because it's worth nothing now, no one will want to buy it, no one will even want to rent it from us."
The local council, the City of Casey, and the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) objected in 2002 to the last stage of the development in the area next to the tip, which closed in 2005. But that objection was overturned in 2004 by the Victorian Civil and Administrative
Tribunal (VCAT) which ruled the buffer zone between houses and landfill be reduced from 500 metres to 200 metres.
VCAT also ordered the 200m buffer could be progressively reduced as the tipping areas were completed, capped and gas extraction systems were installed.
Slater and Gordon lawyer Ben Hardwick said the law firm had received 30 inquiries from homeowners at the estate about class action against the council. Mr Hardwick said the Victorian government and Peet could also be targeted.
Emergency Services Minister Bob Cameron announced relocation grants of $8,500 available to residents, in addition to the $1,000 emergency grants announced on Thursday. But Opposition Leader Ted Baillieu said the government owed residents far more, considering they had poured more than $10 million in stamp duty into government coffers.
"The state government has received millions of dollars in stamp duty and land tax from this residential development, and (premier) John Brumby now needs to accept responsibility and set aside a significant amount of money to allow families to relocate," he said. "The Brumby government must also address the long term ramifications of ignoring
local planning advice."
Methane levels at the estate will not be considered safe for at least a year, EPA chairman Mick Bourke said. Mr Bourke said when the Cranbourne landfill was sited in the early 1990s, it was not required to be clay-lined to stop methane leaching, but new laws would not allow it to be built that way now.
