Ledger Road Community Update - August

On 20 June 2016 the Shire of Kalamunda issued a Community Update in relation to Ledger Road Reserve in Gooseberry Hill.

The update provided an overview of the Ledger Road Reserve Action Plan to be undertaken. Elements of the plan included:

1. Continue to restrict site access.

2. Air Monitoring.

3. Remove any visible surface asbestos ('emu-pick').

4. Observation and validation of items 1 - 3.

5. Investigation into site history.

6. Contingencies.

At the completion of the above actions a “Preliminary Site Investigation” (PSI) report will be produced. This is consistent with the requirements of both the Department of Environment Regulation (DER) and the Department of Health (DoH). 

The Shire of Kalamunda held a Community Meeting on Thursday 28 July 2016 to provide residents with an opportunity to hear directly from its Consultant regarding progress on site to date. The meeting was well attended by 55 people. 

Air monitoring has been conducted with seven stations monitored before the emu-pick and 12 stations monitored during the emu-pick. The results indicated the official outcome of 'no cause for concern' for respirable fibres (including asbestos) both before and during the site works.  The included field sketch shows the air monitoring locations used.  

An emu-pick has been conducted for the purpose of (i) reducing the amount of Potential Asbestos Containing Material (PACM) from the surface of major paths, (ii) observing the nature/characteristics of the PACM collected, and (iii) mapping and recording the distribution and density of PACM (at that time). Around 300kg of PACM, has been removed from the surface.  

This equates to about 30 - 45kg as asbestos containing material in Australia typically contains between 10 to 15 per cent asbestos, within a cement based matrix.  Both of the field sketches provided show the PACM distribution observed at the time (shaded in red).  Please note as a conservative measure, all material collected was assumed (and expected) to be asbestos containing material, however positive identification of asbestos can generally only be done in a laboratory.

To provide an indication of soil quality at the time, limited soil sampling was carried out with a focus on areas where the density of PACM was highest and/or at important access locations.  The field sketch shows where both surface samples and shallow test pit sampling was done. Forty-three soil samples were collected from the site and of these, five of the soil samples contained asbestos fines ie: asbestos material less than 7mm in size, which is expected given the history of the site. Indicative water testing of the dam located in the reserve has been also been done. 

Investigation into the site history is continuing. Investigation includes historical searches, aerial photography, meeting with community, sourcing historical information and defining the environmental setting.

Please see below an overview of the site use.

• Parts of the Reserve included a former quarry, with both clay and gravel excavated from the site.
• 1950’s and 60’s - the centre of the Reserve was a gazetted tip site.
• Late 1960’s/early 1970’s - tip site was closed.
• 1980’s through to today - the Shire has worked with various community groups to manage and remediate the site.
• 2006 – Asbestos Management Plan developed. The plan has focused on the removal of small fragments of asbestos, covering, mulching of large areas and replanting native vegetation.
• 30 June 2008 - Reserve was classified by the Department of Environment Regulation as "Remediated for Restricted Use."

The site was restricted to be used as a passive, low intensity recreation and bushland reserve.

What is Next?