NSW environment watchdog investigating asbestos ‘concerned’ about mulch sold throughout 2023

Exclusive: EPA also exploring recall of mulch products made by Greenlife Resource Recovery

The New South Wales environment watchdog has raised concerns about mulch manufactured and sold between March and December last year that was not available for them to inspect when they visited the supplier of landscaping products which have since been found to contain asbestos.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) is also exploring a recall of mulch products made by Greenlife Resource Recovery while the state government considers increased fines and regulation for the sector.

The NSW environment minister, Penny Sharpe, on Wednesday evening said that, while the state had “some of the strongest asbestos regulations in Australia”, more needed to be done.

“The current investigation shows there are challenges and the NSW government will consider both stronger regulation and higher penalties to act as both a punishment and disincentive,” she said.

“The NSW government has increased the number of EPA officers working on this investigation to 110. It’s one of the largest investigations the EPA has done in a decade.”

The discovery of bonded asbestos in the park on top of the Rozelle interchange in January prompted a broad investigation by the EPA and the NSW government, which has detected the contaminant at other sites across Sydney and on the south coast of NSW.

The investigation is focused on mulch from Greenlife, which last week lodged an appeal in the state’s land and environment court challenging a prevention notice from the EPA to stop it selling mulch while the issue is investigated.

The EPA holds concerns after it said it was unable to test mulch made and distributed in 2023 when it visited the company’s facility last month.

“Samples collected from a stockpile at the site of the original supplier in January 2024 showed no positive detects for asbestos, however we are concerned about mulch that was manufactured and sold between March and December 2023 and is no longer on site,” an EPA spokesperson said.

Earlier this week, Greenlife said the EPA had tested nine mulch samples and three soil samples taken from its facility in January and the results showed the materials were “free of asbestos contamination”.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson said that independent laboratories had tested Greenlife’s mulch more than 20 times over the 2023 period in question and found it was free of asbestos.

“[Greenlife] stands by its statements and maintains that mulch leaving GRRF’s facility has tested negative for asbestos,” the spokesperson said.

“There remains a large mulch stockpile on site from which loads were picked up and delivered to third party sites [between March and December 2023]. As a precaution, and as required by the EPA, the stockpile is isolated on site.”

Sharpe on Thursday told ABC radio: “Greenlife are associated with all of the sites that have been found to be positive so far. That’s the concern and that’s why the investigation is taking place.”

The EPA has been in discussions with Fair Trading NSW and the national consumer watchdog about a possible recall of mulch products.

“The EPA is exploring several options to ensure all impacted mulch is identified and cleaned up,” the spokesperson said.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission was contacted about the possibility of a recall earlier this week, according to a spokesperson.

“We are assessing the issue and providing guidance to the NSW EPA about the options that they may have available to them,” the spokesperson said.

The EPA chief executive, Tony Chappel, said the agency was undertaking a “major criminal investigation” into the mulch supply chain to pinpoint the source of the contamination and potentially bring the matter before the courts.

Chappel said the agency was investigating a “very complex” supply chain in its entirety and this included looking into other suppliers of recycled mulch.

The EPA may recommend that the government give it stronger powers and tighten the regulations around mulch production, Chappel said.

“That’s very much going to be informed by the result of this investigation and our work across the supply chain,” he told reporters.

Suppliers of mulch in NSW must follow rules that are set out in the state’s mulch order.

The regulations require suppliers to ensure the mulch does not contain asbestos, engineered wood products, preservative-treated or coated wood residues, or a range of physical contaminants, including glass, metal, rigid and flexible plastics and polystyrene.

However, the regulations do not set out specific steps suppliers must follow to ensure mulch is free from contaminants such as asbestos. A spokesperson for the EPA said it was instead left to suppliers to “choose how to ensure compliance with the order, for example via strict quality controls on the inputs or via sampling and testing the outputs”.

Cover photo: The EPA said it was unable to test mulch made and distributed between March and December 2023 when it visited Greenlife Resource Recovery’s facility in January. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/EPA