Cleaning Up Pallarenda

Telstra ensures property is in perfect condition before handing back to Government.
The Cape Pallarenda Conservation Park is located 10 kilometres from the Townsville GPO in Far North Queensland. Its open woodlands and vine thickets support a variety of animal and bird life and its walking tracks, picnic areas, and historical Quarantine Station and Museum make it a popular destination for tourists and Townville residents alike.

A small portion of this area was leased to the Telstra Corporation to site an antennae array used to maintain contact with ships at sea. Over the years changes in technology have made this installation obsolete and in May 2004 the lease on this parcel of land was transferred from Telstra to Australian Air Support Services. Prior to the lease transfer it was discovered that a part of the lease area, a wetland adjacent to the boundary of the park, had been polluted by the illegal dumping of building rubble and waste vegetation. Damage caused from illegal use of quad bikes within the park was also evidenced. Telstra made the immediate decision to rehabilitate the area and contacted Thiess Waste Management System to coordinate the project.

With Thiess overseeing the project, NQCCS was contracted to perform the required works. Joe DiBella of NQCCS used satellite imaging to pinpoint the affected area of the park and to identify through colour differential imaging any possible leaching of toxic runoff into the wetland basin. In close consultation with Townsville City Council and the Queensland Environmental Protection Agency, a plan was developed to remove the waste and to restore the original profile of the wetlands with minimum of disturbance or damage to the remnant mangrove vegetation.

By using a long reach excavator, NQCCS was able to remove the dumped material layer by layer without encroaching on the delicate wetland floor. Each layer of waste was inspected by onsite staff to ensure that no hazardous materials were concealed under soil or concrete slabs. Silt traps and chemical skimmers were deployed around the operating zone as an added precaution.

Over a three-day period almost 50 tonnes of material was removed from the wetland. Original watercourses were restored, and the native vegetation will regenerate over time.
The area was inspected at the completion of activities and Townsville City Council has now signed off all rehabilitation work. Council thanked Thiess Waste Management System, Telstra, and NQCCS for our cooperation in this issue and for our quick response to correct the problem.

Although the persons responsible for this act of environmental vandalism may never be identified, thanks to Telstra these delicate wetlands survive for the future enjoyment of the community.

Another Dirty Deed…Done Just Right!

- Quarterly Publication of Thiess Waste Management System Volume 1 – October 2004