Victoria’s anti-corruption body has referred two issues arising out of Moira Shire Council’s mismanagement to other bodies for investigation.
The council was dismissed in March after an investigation by a commission of inquiry.
The commission’s report, presented to Victorian parliament, found that an employee had engaged in serious misconduct in awarding contracts for work worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The commission referred the matter to the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission, but IBAC has referred this on to the Local Government Inspectorate.
The commission also found the council had authorised the illegal dumping of asbestos in Tungamah and Strathmerton to avoid paying high costs.
IBAC has referred this matter to the council’s administrators to resolve.
The council administrators have appointed an independent investigator to assess the causes, sources and responsibility of how the issue occurred in 2019.
The council has also changed its operational processes to help prevent a similar occurrence in the future, according to chief administrator John Tanner.
Mr Tanner said extensive investigations had begun in May into the illegal disposal, as well as plans for the remediation processes at the transfer stations.
“This is a most serious matter, and has the highest priority for council with its investigations and remediation operations,” he said.
“People must have every confidence in how we treat and process waste, with personal safety and health being paramount.
“The investigations have revealed there is an estimated 1600 cubic metres of soil contaminated with asbestos-containing material inappropriately stored at the Tungamah Transfer Station and less than 10 cubic metres at the Strathmerton station. Both stations are not licensed to receive asbestos-contaminated fill.”
Mr Tanner said the council had already put up signage at the waste stations highlighting the contaminated areas and had sectioned them off from public access. It had also carried out soil tests in neighbouring properties to ensure there was no contamination of their soils. There has been none detected to date.
Remediation work will begin in mid-July.
“The council is committed to reporting in detail on its progress to IBAC and to the community through its monthly council meetings,” Mr Tanner said.
The council noted that IBAC may request further information in the future.
According to the commission of inquiry:
“In 2019, council undertook preparatory works to excavate and remove a large quantity of soil contaminated with toxic substances, including asbestos, from a former Country Roads Board tip site in Rowe St, Numurkah.
“The intent of the project was to extend the site’s capacity as a flood retardation basin. It was not the first time that council had tried to do this.”
Under EPA regulations, fill containing asbestos could only be removed and transported to a site licensed to receive it. There was no such site in Moira Shire.
Undaunted, the council decided to excavate the contaminated soil and transfer it to waste transfer stations at Tungamah and Strathmerton.
The council’s chief executive was admonished for not reporting what had occurred to IBAC.
“The driving factor was cost,” the commission report stated.
“The former CEO told the commission that if funding approval had been sought from council for an estimated $1 million to remove the soil and take it to an EPA-licensed facility at Shepparton, it ‘would never have got up’.
“The safety risks for the council’s workforce, for the contractors engaged and the community were outweighed by council’s determination to implement a solution less costly than transporting the contaminated fill to a licensed facility in Shepparton.”
A council manager was also accused by the commission of inquiry of awarding contracts to a family member’s company.
The manager has rejected the claims of procurement misconduct.
Mr Tanner said the council was taking a judicious approach to the procurement matters under the commission’s report, undertaking a diligent review of its procurement procedures and implementing continuous monitoring processes.