The suspect mulch has potentially been used at hundreds of locations across Sydney and regional NSW, and now Canberra. Photo: File.
The potentially asbestos-contaminated mulch rattling people across Sydney has been sold in Canberra.
The ACT Government said the NSW Environmental Protection Authority had advised the ACT EPA on Saturday (17 February) that the potentially contaminated mulch was sold to ACT landscaping supply company Stonehenge Beltana in Pialligo.
The mulch suspected of containing bonded asbestos was marketed locally as ‘cottage mulch’ and sold to 24 companies and 27 addresses in and around Canberra.
The government said it had acted quickly to prevent any further sale of the possibly contaminated mulch.
“Records are held for many of the purchases, so most customers have already been contacted and informed by the retailer. Others will be contacted in the coming days as they are identified,” it said in a statement.
The ACT EPA was talking with the NSW Government Asbestos Taskforce, which has been established to manage the issue.
The mulch may have been used at hundreds of locations across Sydney and regional NSW.
The ACT had also established a local task force, led by the ACT EPA and bringing together key areas of the government, including WorkSafe ACT.
“The ACT has strong regulatory controls in place around the processing of locally produced mulch,” the government said. “However, mulch can be purchased from interstate and sold and used in the ACT, and this is a key area of current enquiry to protect the community.”
The initial source of the mulch is the southwest Sydney business Greenlife Resource Recovery Facility, and the dates for potentially affected mulch coming to the ACT are between March and November 2023.
“The ACT EPA would like to thank Stonehenge Beltana for their cooperation and proactive approach in working to support the management of this issue and will also seek to contact known customers,” the government said.
It said the public health risk of bonded asbestos was low.
Updates will be provided on the Access Canberra website at www.accesscanberra.act.gov.au.
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