Hampton Park Transfer Station

The City of Casey’s statutory planning team will assess the Planning Permit (PP) application which will be submitted by Veolia in December 2023. It is anticipated this assessment will take at least 60 days. 

Veolia also submited a Development Licence (DL) application to the Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA)  in December 2023. EPA assessment of the DL application will involve public exhibition and is guided by a four month statutory timeframe, from acceptance of the application. 

During the DL and PP application process, Veolia will engage with the community regarding the proposed facility and its operations. 

There are two other separate processes being undertaken by the City of Council and EPA that have relevance to the waste precinct, in which the transfer station is located. 

Buffer area overlay:
City of Casey’s Administrators are working on changes to the Casey Planning Scheme. This includes an investigation of the merits of applying a Buffer Area Overlay over the existing residential development within 500 metres of the existing Hallam Road landfill. 

Further information can be found at https://www.casey.vic.gov.au/policies-strategies/hampton-park-hill-draft-development-plan

Industry separation distances: 

EPA is in the process of updating two guidelines:

• Separation Distance Guideline
• Landfill buffer guideline

These updated guidelines will support land use and development decisions that:

• protect human health and amenity from the effects of pollution and waste associated with the operation of industry and landfills; and
• protect industry and landfills from inappropriate land use and development nearby that may constrain operations.

EPA is expected to finalise the draft Guidelines in mid to late 2023. 

Further information can be found at https://engage.vic.gov.au/separation-distances-and-landfill-buffers 

The proposed transfer station will accept general waste from domestic, commercial and industrial sources. This facility will service primarily the Southeast area in Melbourne.
 

The facility will accept the following waste types:

• Municipal Waste - waste from a municipal kerbside collection
• Industrial Waste (Construction and Demolition) - Waste from construction, demolition and other sources which is solid inert waste
• Industrial Waste (Commercial and Industrial) - Waste from commercial and industrial sources that includes putrescible waste

Waste will be consolidated and packed into containers on site. 

Waste degradation on site will be minimal as during normal operations the facility will be cleared of waste at the end of the day. 

Waste will be consolidated and containerised at the transfer station before being transported to a range of further recycling or disposal locations.

This includes recovery and recycling of some waste streams e.g. metal and timber, and the efficient transfer of residual waste to energy recovery facilities, such as that under development at Maryvale.

No recycling or resource recovery activities are proposed to occur on site at this stage.

The Hallam Road Landfill has a licence through to 2040 but is expected to fill this decade.

As part of our commitment to ecological transformation, the transfer station is a critical step in the transition away from landfill. It will function as a consolidation point before transporting to facilities which seek to further process waste material within Victoria’s resource economy. In time, the Maryvale waste to energy facility may be a destination for waste from the transfer station. 

After the landfill is closed Veolia will remediate and maintain the landfill site during the aftercare period (which is estimated to be 30 years). The land will be returned to the council after remediation has been achieved and it has been approved as compliant by an independent auditor and EPA.

Transfer stations must be built within areas zoned for waste activity.

The proposed transfer station site is located within the designated Hampton Park waste precinct as identified in the 2018 Statewide Waste and Resource Recovery Infrastructure Plan, and supported by the Plan Melbourne 2017-2050, and confirmed in the Hampton Park Hill Development Plan.   

Located on one of the area’s major arterial roads, the site has good access to transport networks and is integrated within the precinct of waste activities. It has appropriate buffers to support waste and resource recovery activities. 

Veolia has identified the site as an opportunity for long-term capital investment that will have minimal impact on local amenity and supports best-practice waste management for our growing population. 

The transfer station will consolidate local waste streams to achieve tonnages needed to maximise resource recovery. It will also help attract investment in further localised resource recovery infrastructure, thereby supporting further local job opportunities and economic growth. 

As part of the preparation of the Development Licence and Planning Permit applications, Veolia assessed and prepared detailed studies to address potential environmental impacts and consider, where necessary, suitable mitigation measures to minimise potential impacts. This included air quality and odour management, noise, traffic, soil and water, waste management, and socio-economic impacts.  

In time, the Maryvale waste to energy facility may be a destination for waste from the transfer station. 
 

The transfer station will help facilitate a transition away from landfill. 

Meteorological data and plume modelling has been used to assess potential odour and design a best-practice facility with minimal odour.

Waste will be received and compacted into containers in a fully enclosed building to minimise odour.

The building will be equipped with automatic doors to reduce the exposure time of internal area and outside atmosphere. In addition, the building will be held under negative pressure to further minimise odour release from door openings and other potential fugitive emissions. 

Under normal circumstances,  the average load of waste will remain  in the facility for less than 24 hours. 

The facility will have a best practice air extraction system to help minimise odour. Fans will extract air from the building at a rate of 14 times the building volume per hour.

This will significantly dilute the air which will then be extracted through a high stack to maximise dispersal (while not impacting the amenity of the area).

The transfer station’s location on one of the south-east’s main arterial routes ensures efficient transportation of the compacted waste to other use facilities.

The proposed transfer station is anticipated to generate similar levels of traffic movements to the existing landfill operation with approximately 500 movements daily.

This will involve approximately 200-230 trucks per day delivering waste to the facility. For every six trucks delivering waste to the facility, following compaction and containerisation, a single A-double truck will transport the waste from the facility.

Waste will be delivered to the facility by trucks with an average 8.9 tonne load. Waste will be removed from the facility by trucks which can carry up to 52 tonnes in a single load. This can vary slightly depending on the type of materials and how densely they can be packed, and the weight of the specific truck and trailers. The total weight of the vehicle combination with payload must be within road safety limits.

Based on current modelling, an average of four A double trucks would leave the site each hour between 6am and 6pm.

We will work with the relevant authorities to ensure our transport management plan meets  public safety requirements.

Picture: Transportation of waste to and from transfer station. 

*Based on average truck tonnages and comparable compaction data, final result is subject to the composition of waste received during operation.

A noise assessment was completed  as part of the planning process in October 2019 (before the COVID pandemic and lockdowns). 

Modelling demonstrates that the facility would operate below noise limits established by EPA.

Prevention of fire incidents and mitigating fire risk is a high priority for Veolia. Veolia’s Global standard and local regulatory codes and practices for fire prevention and protection are applied to the design, management and operation of the HPTS facility.

Day to day operation of the facility will involve several fire risk mitigations. 

A Waste Acceptance Protocol will be developed to work with customers to prevent non-compliant material entering the site e.g. batteries 

Waste on the tipping floor will be visually inspected. Hazardous waste will be separated and stored in a quarantine area to the extent possible  

Waste will not be stockpiled at the site. During normal operations, waste in the building will be cleared each night, further minimising the risk of fire on site.

The building will be constructed using fire resistant materials, such as concrete and steel. It will contain automatic rapid rise doors, which can be deployed to reduce airflow into the building to further minimise fire risk. 

And as the waste will be containerized – compacted and with little access to oxygen -  potential fire management is assisted. 

Detection, sprinkler systems, and fire services will be installed in accordance with a fire management plan and assessment by the fire brigade and local authorities.

The facility will be equipped with fire-fighting infrastructure to ensure that potential waste fires can be controlled and extinguished in the early stages of combustion. The fire infrastructure on site will include two fire water tanks with total capacity of 385kL, a fire pump room, 10 fire hydrants and onsite firefighting equipment.

We have a significant planning and approvals process to move through before construction begins. Ideally, construction will begin in 2024, and we would like the facility to be operating by 2026. 

We would like the facility to be operating by 2026. 

Veolia will engage with the community regarding the proposed facility and its operations throughout  the Planning Permit and Development Licence application process.

EPA will seek community input through its assessment of the DL application.  

Veolia’s website and information materials will be kept updated.  Regular updates will be shared via email and directly with community groups. If you would like to receive these updates, please email [email protected]. Residents and stakeholders are also encouraged to submit questions and concerns to this email. 

A HPTS-specific Community Reference Group has be established to facilitate the flow of information and help address community questions and concerns. Interested residents should [email protected] for a copy of the Terms of Reference.