Council completes rehabilitation of Castlemaine landfill

Published on 10 July 2023

Mount Alexander Shire Council has completed capping and rehabilitation works at the Castlemaine landfill site on Sluicers Road, ensuring the site meets certain environmental protection controls.

The works involved constructing a cover of synthetic and earthen materials over the landfill cells. The materials have specific properties that in combination reduce the risk of pollution. All works were carried out by Apex Earthworks Pty Ltd in accordance with EPA Victoria requirements.

Landfill capping helps prevent potential environmental contamination into the future through isolating waste from the wider environment. The primary object is to prevent water coming into contact with waste and then polluting ground or storm water. It also helps deal with landfill gases and prevent interaction of people and wildlife with contaminants.

The outcome of this project is a controlled landfill site that is safe, environmentally sound and visually improved.

Mount Alexander Shire Council’s Mayor, Councillor Rosie Annear, said that Council is gratified to see the outcome of this long-awaited project.

“Council ha been planning this cell capping for many years,” said Mayor Annear.

“We’ve been working hard to plan this initiative and ensure that it was done in accordance with EPA Victoria’s outlines.

“We budgeted $7.5 million from Council’s waste reserve to complete this project and I’m pleased to say that we’ve achieved a great deal with this money.

“The result is a safe site that ensures environmental longevity, and that will become a green space once the grass has grown in.

“This has been a very successful project and I’m pleased that Council was able to deliver it on time and on budget.”

The landfill site has been decommissioned and one of the final actions was to cover the new caps with mulch to establish vegetation to help protect erosion.

Much of the mulch used was sourced on-site, having been collected from the transfer station, and has been progressively composted and matured over a number of months. The final surface has been seeded with low yield ryegrass with the intention of sowing with native seeds come spring.

Council will continue to monitor the site for many years to come to ensure the integrity of the cap is maintained and the risk of pollution is controlled.

Read more about the Castlemaine Landfill capping project, and other major projects, at www.mountalexander.vic.gov.au/Building-and-Planning/Major-projects.