Waratah Gasworks site remediation
In progress: The NSW Government is solving the legacy contamination of a former gasworks site, working with landholders on the most suitable option for remediation.
Remediation of contaminated private properties
Our Environmental Management Group is leading and managing the remediation of contaminated private properties on the former Waratah Gasworks site in Newcastle.
In September 2021, the NSW Environment Protection Authority declared affected properties associated with the former Waratah Gasworks as significantly contaminated land under the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997.
At the same time, the NSW Environment Protection Authority issued us with a management order to develop a remediation action plan to address the contamination.
Our Environmental Management Group is doing the works needed under the management order. This includes demolition, excavation and remediation works in line with the approved remediation action plan.
We are doing this work in close consultation with all stakeholders. This includes affected residents and landholders within and next to the affected properties, the NSW Environment Protection Authority, the City of Newcastle, and NSW Health.
Background
The former Waratah Gasworks operated on land bounded by Ellis, Turton and Georgetown roads, Waratah, from 1889 to 1926.
The NSW Government did not run the gasworks, nor was it responsible for the contamination. However, in 2019 the NSW Government announced that it would help manage the remediation process and work with landholders to decide on the most suitable option for remediation.
The NSW Environment Protection Authority investigated who was liable for the remediation work. This was to ensure, where possible, private industry would be accountable for its actions. We could not progress the remediation works while these legal investigations were underway.
While legal advice to date has not decided who is responsible for the cost of the remediation, the Environmental Management Group is working to resolve the contamination.
Project stages
- We began remediation works on site in September 2023 and expect to complete them by the end of 2024.
- The Environmental Management Group will continue to consult with affected residents, landowners and key stakeholders throughout the remediation process.
- Once we have remediated the site, the land will be suitable for ongoing residential use.
Community updates
- August 2024 community notice: Former Waratah Gasworks site – remediation (PDF 111.44KB)
- August 2023 community notice: Former Waratah Gasworks site – demolition and remediation (PDF 202.93KB)
Frequently asked questions
The former Waratah Gasworks site is on residential land bound by Ellis, Turton and Georgetown roads in the Newcastle suburb of Waratah.
In 2019, the Environment Protection Authority advised the NSW Government that a former gasworks may have operated in Waratah. Because of the historical nature of the gasworks, the department had few records about it. However, historical evidence confirmed that a gasworks ran on the site from 1889 to 1926.
Waratah Municipal Council built the former gasworks in 1889 and decommissioned it around 1928. The site was originally owned by the NSW Government.
Waratah Municipal Council merged with the Council of Greater Newcastle in 1938. Consistent with practices of the time, there were few (if any) council and government records of the gasworks.
The state and local governments did not know about the gasworks site, and it was not in the NSW Environment Protection Authority’s register of gasworks locations. A public enquiry about a historic map alerted the NSW Environment Protection Authority to the former gasworks in 2016.
Former gasworks sites typically include:
- tars
- oils
- hydrocarbon sludges
- spent oxides (including complex cyanides)
- ash
- ammoniacal recovery wastes.
For more information about the wastes and by-products found on former gasworks sites, visit the NSW Environment Protection Authority website.
Many of the wastes and by-products the gasworks produced were recycled or reused. However, it was common for some to be buried on or near gasworks sites, for example in underground tar wells, liquor wells, pipes and purifier beds. At the former Waratah Gasworks site, not all this infrastructure was removed when the gasworks was decommissioned before the land was redeveloped and sold for residential use.
The council originally investigated the site. This included engaging an independent environmental consultant to do an environmental investigation from late-2016 until late-2017.
The investigation found that the eastern part of the site had concentrations of gasworks-related substances above recommended levels for the area. It recommended remediating 13 properties within the former Waratah Gasworks footprint to minimise residents’ potential exposure to the substances.
Although the NSW Government did not run the gasworks and was not responsible for the contamination, the government decided that Property and Development NSW was the best authority to manage the contaminated site and work with the affected landholders on remediation.
The remediation works are being undertaken via a review of environmental factors (REF) in accordance with Part 5 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act.
Remediation of the Former Waratah Gasworks review documents:
- Remediation of the Former Waratah Gasworks – Addendum Review of Environmental Factors – July 2024 (PDF 1.97MB)
- Remediation of Former Waratah Gasworks – Addendum Review of Environmental Factors – April 2024 (PDF 1.08MB)
- Remediation of Former Waratah Gasworks – Addendum Review of Environmental Factors – August 2023 (PDF 16.49MB)
- Remediation of Former Waratah Gasworks – Review of Environmental Factors – December 2022 (PDF 19.57MB)
The Environmental Management Group is carrying out remediation works with a civil works contractor. This includes demolition and excavation at 13 affected properties at Ellis, Turton and Georgetown Roads to remove legacy waste and infrastructure and remediate contaminated soil.
Throughout the remediation works, we aim to minimise disruption and to mitigate any effects on the community.
Safety is our highest priority. We have erected security fencing and signage around demolition areas for public safety. Traffic controllers direct vehicle and pedestrian movements. We are carrying out environmental controls to minimise effects including dust, odour and noise.
Once we have remediated the site, the contamination associated with the former gasworks will be resolved so the land is suitable for ongoing residential use.
We will keep all stakeholders up to date as the remediation works progress. This includes:
- residents
- landowners
- NSW Environment Protection Authority
- NSW Health
- City of Newcastle.
The government’s priority is the affected residents and their concerns. We will continue to consult directly with those landowners.
The eastern part of the site has concentrations of gasworks-related substances above recommended levels for the area.
In 2016, the council consulted with Hunter New England Local Health District (NSW Health) and the NSW Environment Protection Authority to give affected landholders precautionary advice about health and environmental concerns.
Residents in the area should continue following this advice until we complete the necessary remediation actions. Residents on the affected 13 properties should:
- not eat any vegetables grown or eggs laid by hens on the property
- avoid having areas of bare soil by keeping a grass cover or other structural covering over the areas
- limit exposure to soil during gardening activities by:
- minimising dust generation
- wearing gloves
- washing hands after handling soil
- only allow children to play in sandpits or soil in raised beds or structures above the natural ground level, using sand or soil that has not come from onsite.