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Grants for community Four Brimbank community groups have received a funding boost from Australia Post. The Friends of HV McKay Memorial Gardens in Sunshine received $984 to produce an e-newsletter and update their website presence to raise awareness of the gardens. The heritage-listed gardens were formed in 1908 and the Friends of HV McKay Memorial Gardens group was set up in 2007 to support the improvement of the gardens and to ensure its historical significance is respected and maintained. Secretary Russell Smith said the friends group runs annual community festivals, tours, weeding and planting days, and advocates on behalf of the gardens. The Refugee Migrant Children Centre in Sunshine received $1000 to purchase supplies for its school holiday program, while the Keilor Basketball Association received $1000 to hold a First Nations round, and the Uganda the Pearl of Africa Victoria Association in Cairnlea received $1000 for its program to encourage girls to become involved in soccer. Max Hatzoglou
Friends of McKay Memorial Gardens secretary Russell Smith. (Damjan Janevski) 283926_01
Scathing spoil findings By Olivia Condous The Victorian Ombudsman has condemned the state’s environmental regulator over the handling of the dumping of West Gate Tunnel Project (WGTP) spoil into the western suburbs. The report, tabled by Ombudsman Deborah Glass in parliament on Tuesday, May 31, says the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) failed to properly engage with local community groups over the soil disposal, and lacked accountability which in turn increased local concern.
It also found the EPA had approved earlier versions of Environment Management Plans (EMPs) with “deficient information” due to government pressure “to ‘fix’ problems”, as well as overlooking the human rights of locals. However, the report said the EPA’s decision to approve EMPs for spoil disposal was “environmentally sound” and didn’t place local communities at significant risk. Melton and Bacchus Marsh residents raised strong concerns over the dumping of the soil, after the Maddingley Brown Coal and the Cleanaway site in Ravenhall were initially approved as possible sites to store the soil.
Bacchus Marsh Community Coalition member Kat Barlow said the report was “rightly scathing” of the EPA. “It vindicates our longstanding community concerns that we weren’t being considered and no one had bothered to consult with us because they’d decided how we felt,” Ms Barlow said. She said the community remained concerned about the EPA’s management of environmental issues and feared it’s approach was more reactive rather than responsive. “We certainly remain concerned about community and environmental health,” Ms
Barlow said. “The EPA have asserted that they were trying to build trust within the communities, but we haven’t heard from the EPA.” The Ombudsman launched the investigation in August 2021 following concerns from local communities near three sites in Bacchus Marsh, Ravenhall and Bulla approved by the EPA for the dumping of spoil from the WGTP, after the discovery of PFAS chemicals in the project’s groundwater. ■ Continued:
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