Third-party auditing of the assessment and 

remediation of four rural manufacturing 

gasworks, Victoria, Australia

P. Sinclair, S. Richards, F. Howe and R. Negrelli

Abstract

SP Ausnet owns several small former manufacturing gasworks sites in rural Victoria, following privatisation of a state-owned corporation. The Castlemaine, Horsham, Ararat and Stawell sites were selected to be remediated in a single, integrated program. With support of the Environment Protection Authority Victoria (VicEPA), the largest and least-sensitive site at Ararat was selected as the ‘hub site’ for bioremediation of treatable materials from all four sites. SP Ausnet sought an independent auditor with gasworks auditing experience and a strong appreciation of hydrogeological issues

who would work closely with the remediation contractor and SP Ausnet in a timely and co-operative manner. Remediation Action Plans were prepared by the remediation contractor, reviewed by the auditor then provided to VicEPA for approval. Site-specific clean-up criteria were developed by the

remediation contractor, reviewed, modified and then endorsed by the auditor. The criteria were based on protection of human health and ecological values for near-surface and mid-depth soils and groundwater quality for the deeper soils. For contract purposes, the remediation contractor needed

auditor concurrence before an excavation or remediation task was considered complete. Determination of Clean-up of Groundwater to the Extent Practicable (CUTEP) was part of the audit process. The goal was for the auditor to issue a Statutory Certificate or Statement of Environmental Audit for

each site indicating it was suitable for all or a selected subset of uses.

Key words: auditing, management, gasworks, groundwater, hub, rural, Victoria

© 2007 EPP Publications Ltd

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Article code 776