Update on Eastern Creek Landfill Facility

Permanent Flares now operational at Eastern Creek 

After over 12 months of planning, design, and construction, the two permanent flares at BINGO’s Eastern Creek Recycling Ecology Park (REP) have been certified and are now operational.

A significant milestone for our REP, and as indicated to the community and stakeholders, is up and running before Christmas.

The permanent flares compound is located next to the weighbridges. Two kilometres of main gas line upgrades, and over 70 wells drilled are also now delivering landfill gas to our new permanent flares.

The flares are designed with a methane destruction efficiency greater than 99% which helps lower emissions and improves environmental outcomes for the Eastern Creek site and the community. 

Work continues on the landfill gas collection system (LFGCS) at our Eastern Creek site.

 Highlights from past four weeks include:

• 355mm main gas ring is now completed 
• New permanent flares final stages of fabrication
• Landfill gas pipeline upgrade is now ~ 90% completed 
• Excavations completed in flare compound
• Electrical conduits installed prior to concreting 
• Concrete pad areas for flares now ready for formwork
• Last section of the 355mm centre has been laid out but not connected 

The focus of the next two weeks will be on the following activities:

• Concrete header anchor designs and 450mm header lines to be finalised 
• Final stages of 355mm centre head line to be connected (one weld remaining)
• Preparations/welding for the 450mm header line
• Ongoing tuning of the gas field to optimise flow through the new wells
• Flare 1 to be tested in the Factory 29/11/22 – Shipping to Sydney 05/12/22
• Flare 2 to be tested in the Factory 09/12/22 – Shipping to Sydney 12/12/22
• Install concrete pads for new flares 

Highlights from last two weeks include:

• Recent weather has delayed some pipe laying works – however still on schedule.
• Stage 11 now completed – 355mm main gas ring is now completed. 
• New permanent flares being prepared for galvanising, and electrical works are ongoing.
• 14 x deep wells & 14 x shallow wells have been connected over the past two weeks.
• Landfill gas pipeline upgrade is now ~85% completed. 
• DPIE has approved the new position for flares.
• Flare 8 is now connected to the new 355mm header line.
• Excavation gas commenced on the new flare compound.

Work Next 2 weeks focus will be on the following activities:

• Geotech works to commence for new flare compound (to finalise concrete pad designs). 
• Concrete header anchor designs and 450mm header lines to be finalised. 
• Final stages of 355mm centre head line installation and associated wells.
• Preparations/welding for the 450mm header line.
• Ongoing tuning of the gas field to optimise flow through the new wells.
• Preparation for last three horizontal lines. 

Highlights from the last two weeks include:

• Delays occurred due to heavy rain over last two weeks (difficult ground conditions for installing)
• Stages 9 & 10 of 355mm main gas line installed (wells to be connected)
• Fabrication of the two new flares continues offsite in Victoria with Energy 360
• Preparation for last stages of the main gas ring 355mm
• Landfill gas upgrade is now ~75% completed 

The focus for the next two weeks will be on the following activities:

• Preparation for civil works for new flare pads 
• Concrete header anchor designs to be finalised 
• Final approval for new flare location (with DPIE)
• Preparation for laying 355mm pipe for stage 10 & 11 (operational Area)
• Visit Energy 360 on to view progress of permanent flares
• Preparations for the 450mm header line
• Modifications to flare 8 supply line to Main 355mm line to improve stability with flow
• Ongoing tuning of the gas field to optimise flow through the new wells

Work continues on the landfill gas collection system (LFGCS) at our Eastern Creek site.

Highlights from the last two weeks include:

• Completion of stages 7 & 8 (and wells connected in this area)
• Fabrication of the two new flares continues offsite in Victoria with Energy 360
• Eight temporary flares continue to extract while construction continues on the 355mm pipe lines 
• Landfill gas upgrade is now ~ 60% completed 
• 34 wells are now connected to the new 355mm header line

Over the next two weeks our focus will be on the following activities:

• Preparation for civil works for new flare pads 
• Concrete header anchor designs to be finalised 
• Preparation for laying 355mm pipe for stages 9 & 10 (operational area)
• Visit Energy 360 on 13/10 to view progress of permanent flares
• Preparations for the 450mm header line
• Ongoing tuning of the gas field to optimise flow through the new wells.

Work continues on the landfill gas collection system (LFGCS) at our Eastern Creek site.

Highlights from last two weeks include:

• All deep well drilling now completed – Drill rig removed from site.
• Repaired two collapsed wells. 
• Stage 6 – 120m of 355mm pipe now completed and wells in this area now online.
• Gas welding of pipes for Stages 7 – 10 now completed, to be installed in the coming weeks.
• Fabrication of the two new flares continues offsite.
• Eight temporary flares continue to extract whilst construction continues on the 355mm pipe line. 
• Landfill gas infrastructure upgrade is now ~ 50% completed. 

Week 8 will be focused on the following activities:

• Preparation for civil works for new flare pads. 
• Preparation for laying 355mm pipe for Stage 7 & 8 (operational area).
• Ongoing fabrication of two new flares offsite.
• Preparations for the 450mm header line.
• Ongoing tuning of the gas field to optimise flow through the new wells.

Work on the landfill gas collection system (LFGCS) at our Eastern Creek site remain on schedule.

 Highlights from Week 4 (w/c 29 August) include:

• Flares 7 and 8 have been installed (8 flares are now online).
• New wells (A059 – A064) are now online and connected to the 355mm gas line. 
• Stage 3 drilling to be completed 1 September 2022, marking the end of the deep drilling for the project.
• Stage 4 and 5 of 355mm main gas line installed and wells connected in that area.

 Week 5 (w/c 5 September) will be focused on the following activities:

• Commencing works for the centre main gas line 355mm.
• Preparing flow lines from recent drilled wells.
• Commencing fabrication for new flares (offsite).
• Welding gas pipe for stages 6 to 10 of 355mm main gas lines.
• Welding gas pipe for 450mm header lines

Further details, including photos, of the work undertaken over the past week attached below.

Work continues on the landfill gas collection system (LFGCS) and leachate riser works as part of the upgrades at our Eastern Creek landfill.

Highlights from Week 3 (w/c 22 August) include:

• All six flares having been running with > 95% uptime.
• Installation of stages 4 and 5 of 10 stages of 355mm Main Gas Ring (ongoing work to October). 
• Leachate Riser completed without incident or odour issues.
• Four new deep wells are now live on the new 355mm Line (A061-A064).
• Flares 7 and 8 to be online by COB on Thursday 25 August.

Week 4 (w/c 29 August) will be focused on the following activities:

• Complete stages 4 & 5 of 10 stages of 355mm Main Gas Ring (ongoing works to October).
• Tuning flares 7 & 8 to the LFGCS.
• Additional wells to be connected to the new 355mm lines for Stages 4 & 5. 
• Preparing drainage and surface water injection lines to leachate riser.
• 6-8 wells to be drilled to 20-32m to improve gas collection in the original wells untapped areas.

Further details, including photos, of the work undertaken can be seen below. 

BINGO has made further progress in the second week of work on the drilling program and leachate riser preparations as part of the upgrades at our Eastern Creek landfill.

Highlights from Week 2 (w/c 15 August) include:

• Drilling and capping of nine new wells to a depth of 32m – ahead of schedule.
• All six flares have been running with > 95% uptime.
• Completion of Stage 3 of 10 for the 355mm main gas ring (ongoing works to October).
• Completion of leachate riser lifts to 12m and installation of new stainless lid with rubber sealing.
• Flare 7 onsite and ready for commissioning.

Week 3 (w/c 22 August) will be focused on the following activities:

• Complete stage 4 of 10 stages of 355mm main gas ring 
• Flare 7 to be commissioned
• Flare 8 to be prepared for installation in week 4
• Reviewing options to drill 3-4 further deep wells to optimise landfill gas collection.

Further details, including photos, of the work undertaken this week is shown here.

BINGO has made solid progress in the first week of work on the drilling program and leachate riser upgrade as part of the permanent flare works at our Eastern Creek landfill.

 Highlights from week one include:

• The successful relocation of flares 1 and 5, and the preparation of the site for flare 7
• The drilling and capping of three deep (~32 metres) wells
• All 6 flares existing flares have been running with 95% uptime

Week two will be focused on the following activities:

• The drilling and capping of a further 7 deep (~32 metres) wells
• Commencement of work on the leachate riser upgrade (from 16 August)
• Stage 2 of 10 stages of 355mm main gas ring to be completed (ongoing works to October)
• Flare 7 to be installed
• Flare 8 to be prepared for installation the following week

 Further detail, including photos, of the work undertaken this week is shown here. 

We’ve received feedback that some of our stakeholders would like additional information on our update of 28 July regarding the forthcoming drilling works and the upgrade to the leachate riser.

As a result we have prepared a brief information pack providing some additional detail and context, including a number of images and diagrams

Work on the drilling program will commence on 5 August 20

To download the pack, click here.

Works commencing on drilling program and leachate riser at BINGO’s Eastern Creek Landfill

BINGO wishes to inform local residents adjacent to our Eastern Creek Recycling Ecology Park that works related to the installation of the permanent flare system – the drilling program and leachate riser upgrade - will commence on Wednesday 3 August 2022. The works are expected to take three to four weeks to complete.

On 11 March 2022, BINGO received formal approval from the NSW Department of Planning and Environment to install a permanent landfill gas flare and collection system in our Eastern Creek Landfill facility. The drilling program and leachate riser upgrade are part of this program of works which is intended to increase the landfill gas capturing activity. 

What work will be taking place?

Drilling program

The drilling program will commence on 3 August and will last approximately three to four weeks. Twelve 32-metre wells will be drilled in the landfill to optimise the capture of gas. These wells will eventually connect to the permanent flares.

Drilling will only take place during daylight hours, and no more than one well will be drilled per day. All wells will be capped at the end of each day.

Leachate riser upgrade

The leachate riser upgrade works will commence on 15 August and be conducted in the following sequence:

1. Cleaning the area around the leachate riser sump to allow installation of horizontal gas capture wells underground.
2. Installing the horizontal gas wells and increasing the height of the transport pipes transferring the gas to the installed flares on site.
3. Increasing the height of the leachate riser sump pipe.
4. Landfilling and covering the cleaned area with a new a layer of materials to reach the leachate riser sump height.

Work on the leachate riser will last approximately seven to 10 days.

What is BINGO doing to prevent odour during the works?

The temporary flare system, comprising six flares, will continue to operate during the works to mitigate any odour produced from the landfill.

To further mitigate any potential for odour, BINGO will be carrying out the following additional precautions during the works:

• Spraying an odour control liquid solution on the exposed surface.
• Installing an odour curtain around the area of works.

You can see the flares here.

Why are the works needed?

Upgrading the gas collection capacity will also include the installation of 1.8km of new pipeline. The new pipelines and two permanent flares are designed to improve efficiency by further increasing gas collection to 3,000m³ per hour, and the upgrades to the pipeline will allow the system to draw up to 8,000m³ per hour  if required. We remain committed to having the two permanent flares operational by the end of November.

What has BINGO done to date?

Over the past 15 months BINGO has carried out extensive works at its Eastern Creek Recycling Ecology Park. We have spent over $4 million to date to address the issue and have committed to spend an additional $3 million to complete the upgrades for the permanent flares.

Works to date:

• Installation of a temporary gas collection and management system comprising six flares (a seventh flare will be added in the coming week)
• Installation of more than 1km of gas pipeline
• Establishment of 38 deep wells and 14 shallow wells of depths up to 32m and 6m respectively
• Installation of additional surface water pumps
• Daily monitoring
• Implementation of an amended Landfill Filling Plan
• Working with Sydney Water to increase rates of leachate extraction
• Improved landfill cover and capping.

You can see progress here.

What should I do if I have an issue?

If community members have any concerns, please call BINGO’s environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 or see bingoindustries.com.au/contact-us.

Where can I go for more information?

For more information about BINGO’s approved Permanent Flare System for Eastern Creek, please visit:

https://www.bingoindustries.com.au/news/permanent-flare-system-for-eastern-creek or

https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/projects/ec-rep-mod-10-landfill-gas-capture-and-treatment-project

For further information:

Environmental hotline: 1300 032 747 General BINGO enquires: 1300 424 646 

BINGO has observed that the continued heavy rain during the first half of July has had an impact on the gas collection system at the Eastern Creek landfill and landfill operations more generally.  

 BINGO has taken a number of immediate steps to address the issue, including: 

• Securing a seventh flare, to be installed over the coming days
• Investigating the availability of an eighth flare, to be installed by the end of August
• Re-instituting a dedicated cover and capping team within the landfill
• Installing a larger (355mm diameter) pipe ring around the perimeter of the landfill, and connecting this to the existing flares
• Treating leachate in the landfill, prior to it being pumped to the leachate treatment plant 

These steps, together with the continued operation of the existing six flares, are expected to improve gas collection capacity.

 If community members have any concerns, please call BINGO’s environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 or contact us.

The NSW Environment Protection Authority has requested BINGO’s support to dispose of waste resulting from recent flooding events in NSW at its Eastern Creek landfill. 

Flood waste is expected to arrive from week commencing 11 July 2022.

BINGO has received NSW EPA approval to expedite the delivery of works associated with the installation of the permanent flare solution at its Eastern Creek landfill facility.

 BINGO will commence work this week on: the installation of new vertical and horizontal wells; upgrading the main gas collection lines; and remedial work on the leachate riser pump. By commencing these works this week, we are confident we will be able to complete the installation of the permanent flare solution by the end of November 2022.

 BINGO is committed to the successful delivery of these works in partnership with the NSW EPA and will continue to implement best practice odour management controls throughout construction works.

Today we completed the drilling of all eight additional pin wells to a depth of six metres. 

Six of the eight wells are now active and extracting gas along the south west wall of the landfill. The remaining two wells will be connected over the weekend. 

This week we also relocated the high capacity flare to the southern wall of the landfill, in order to provide a more even extraction draw on the landfill gas line. 

All six flares remain online and no drilling or trenching works will be undertaken over the weekend.

We encourage community members to contact our environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 or contact us, if they have any concerns.

We would like to provide the Eastern Creek community (and surrounding suburbs) with information about planned activities being carried out at BINGO’s Eastern Creek landfill facility over the coming days. These works relate to our odour mitigation improvement program and include:

• Drilling for six new wells at approximately 6m depth, with 160mm Verticals on the South West Wall; and
• Installing surface laid collection lines (110mm) over approximately 150m.

Drilling will only occur on Thursday 19 and Friday 20 during the hours of 7am to 4pm. To mitigate odour release, all drilled holes will be capped and back filled at the end of each day. There will be no trenching with this works program. 

We anticipate the new wells will come online and be commissioned by 24 May 2022. We will again use a mobile deodorising unit whilst drilling is taking place and continually monitor the area of works for odour release. 

We encourage community members to contact our environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 or contact us, if they have any concerns.

BINGO continues to progress odour mitigation activities in its landfill facility in Eastern Creek.

Since 3 May, this has included:

• The relocation of one flare to the South-Eastern corner of the landfill to assist in gas extraction within the area
• Adding an additional gas extraction line to the leachate riser (two extraction lines are now installed)
• Completing raised clay capping around the entry to the leachate riser to mitigate water entry to the leachate riser
• The installation of six pin wells at depths of six metres on the South wall of the landfill. 

The drilling of wells can sometimes result in temporary emission spikes, but the wells are immediately capped following drilling until they are connected to the gas pipeline.

On 14 and 15 May pipework will be laid on the surface (to avoid digging) to allow the six new wells to be connected to the main gas line. All six wells are expected to be connected by Sunday evening.

All six flares in the landfill are operating. A seventh flare has been ordered to add further capacity. This should arrive onsite in early July.

BINGO continues to keep the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) informed of its work activities. 

BINGO continues to undertake remedial and preventative measure to address any potential odour from its landfill facility at Eastern creek.

Over the past week BINGO has:

• connected five additional gas collection wells in the south-east area of the landfill to improve capture capacity; and
• repaired damage to Flare 2 sustained during the heavy rains of March and April. All six flares within the landfill are now fully-operational.

BINGO would also like to inform the community that works to increase the height of the leachate riser have been postponed for approximately two months when weather conditions are expected to be more favourable. We will provide the community with notice and details of the leachate riser works in advanced of commencing activities.

We encourage community members to contact our environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 or contact us, if they have any concerns.

BINGO would like to inform the local community adjacent to our Eastern Creek site that we will continue to have a team in our landfill working to monitor and manage landfill gas and odour over the Eastern Weekend (15-18 April 2022).

This team will also be continuing to carry out repairs to damage sustained to our landfill gas management system caused by the excessive rains in March.

These works will include:

• Surveying landfill for potential odour sources.
• Continued pumping of ponded water in preparation for remediation of wells situated around the riser.
• Regrading of any locally ponded areas.
• Pumping of water catchment dam at base of access ramp.
• Applying cover material to all areas that have been affected by heavy rains.

We encourage members of the public who may have any questions or concerns to contact us on our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 during this time. 

BINGO continues to take preventive actions at its Eastern Creek facility to manage odour emissions triggered by environmental factors. This includes the engagement of an additional independent expert to investigate and identify potential sources of odour at the Eastern Creek facility, and  to recommend immediate and intermediate mitigation measures to fix identified potential sources of odour. 

This independent expert has identified that the substantial increase in rainfall associated with persistent La Nina conditions along the east coast of Australia impacted the efficacy of the sites integrated landfill gas (LFG) collection and treatment system.

BINGO is in the process of  implementing the following measures:

• Establishing four additional gas collection wells for connection in the south-east area of the landfill to improve capture capacity;
• Removing all water, leachate and sludge pooled around the leachate riser to allow for the re-seal of the leachate sump and re-establish LFG extraction at the leachate sump;
• Ensuring that the intermediate cover surface across the landfill in all areas not being actively used is maintained by compacting, rolling and grading to remove rutting and reduce local pooling;
• Installing five new LFG extraction wells into ‘recently tipped wastes’ areas of the landfill;
• Completing the repair of 2 damaged gas wells at the riser – which wasflooded during March rainfall - and the installation of a temporary pipeline to reconnect these to flares while the riser lift and rectification work is in progress;
• Working with Sydney Water to increase rates of leachate extraction while continually pumping pooled surface water to the sewer.

In addition, BINGO has:

• Secured development approval for the installation of a permanent landfill gas capture and flaring system, approved under MOD10. The project is currently under construction with operation forecast for late 2022;
• Undertaken essential maintenance and rectification works of gas collection wells in the vicinity of riser impacted by March flooding event;
• Finalised planning for a new leachate riser lift
• Undertaken critical maintenance works and commissioning of a sixth flare scheduled for completion on 27 April 2022;
• Commenced the replacement of the leachate extraction pump. scheduled for installation at the end of April;
• Commenced trenching and connection works to five recently installed gas collection works with 5 wells to be connected to the main landfill gas lines by  the end of April.

If you do experience odour, please let us know through our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 or contact us. 

BINGO advices that today Monday 11 April 2022, drilling has commenced on an additional five wells in our Eastern Creek Landfill facility as part of improvements to our landfill gas management system following recent impacts due to heavy rain events in March and April 2022.

We advise the community that drilling operations may result in a temporary increase in odour from the site. Drilling operations are expected to continue for the next eight days. These works are expected to improve the long term performance of our landfill gas capture and treatment system.

If you do experience odour, please let us know through our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 or contact us. 

BINGO continues to undertake remedial and preventative measures to address any potential odour from its landfill facility at Eastern Creek.

 Activities in the past week have included: 

• The installation of sixth flare on 2 April. This is now operating.
• Maintaining the operation of a minimum of four flares while moving two flares to higher ground
• The ongoing repair of flare two, which will be offline until mid-April. Replacement parts are being air freighted from the UK   
• The connection of four additional gas collection wells that were originally planned for connection with the commissioning of the permanent flare system.  This will further improve the collection of gas along the southern side of the landfill
• The arrival of the drill rig onsite on 7 April, ready for works to commence next week
• Daily control checks and maintenance of the leachate treatment plant (LTP), and the trialling of chemical treatments to reduce odour
• Preventative maintenance on one of four tanks in the LTP, while ensuring the remainder of the treatment plant remained online
• Surface water catchment at base of access road and the installation of additional pumps
• Daily monitoring for surface gas and odour

We are also accelerating our ~$4 million landfill upgrade program, otherwise known as our permanent flare system, which was approved by the NSW Department of Planning in March. 

This program includes the following activities being carried out over the following week:

• The drilling of five additional 32 metre wells in the centre of the landfill (a further seven will be drilled at a later date as part of the same system)
• The laying and connecting of pipelines to the main line, which will transport the gas to the  flares

The unprecedented recent rain events have made operations in the landfill challenging but the team is working around the clock to ensure the issue is properly managed.

Since 15 March 2022, BINGO has a received a small number of complaints from the local community regarding odour in the Eastern Creek area. We’d like to provide the local community with an update on the actions we have taken to address these complaints.

While our integrated landfill gas management system has been operating effectively, the heavy rainfall event through January to March this year (which recorded the highest rainfall on record since 1859) has temporarily impacted the efficacy of the system due to localised flooding within the landfill. Covering and capping within the landfill has also become more difficult due to the continued heavy rainfall.

What have we done to respond to the issue? 

• BINGO previously identified that three of our five temporary flares were not operating at full efficacy from 10 - 15 March due to condensation/moisture from the recent heavy rain entering the electrical control systems. Four flares continue to operate efficiently, including one high capacity flare (with a capacity double the other flares).
• A fifth flare is expected to have completed maintenance and refurbishment activities whereby it is expected to be operational by the end of March 2022
• A sixth flare is expected to be operational by the 5^th April 2022.
• BINGO continues to undertake offsite odour monitoring in neighbouring community residential areas
• BINGO continues to undertake onsite landfill gas monitoring
• BINGO landfill Filling Plan has been approved and is being executed.
• Working with Sydney Water to increase rates of leachate extraction while continually pumping pooled surface water to the sewer. Sub-surface and surface water pumping recommenced on 22 March 2022
• We are continuing to monitor and repair as necessary damage to cover, and capping caused by excessive rainfall
• We have completed a review of the gas extraction system and expedited correction of issues such as build-up of condensate in the pipes

Actions currently underway

Further actions currently underway include the following: 

• The implementation of the permanent flare system, which was approved this month
• Establishing four additional gas collection wells proposed for connection in the south-east area of the landfill to improve capture capacity when the full six flares are operational by 5 April 2022
• Reviewing options for upgrading monitoring requirements
• Procurement of permanent flare and early site establishment preparatory works. CAPEX of $3.5M has been approved
• Planning for a new leachate riser lift is in the final stages and ready to activate when conditions permit
• Evaluating leachate management plant upgrade and interim management solutions, with a focus on improving plant reliability and availability

We encourage members of the public who may have any questions or concerns to contact us on our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 or through our contact us page.  

BINGO advises that four of the five flares in its Eastern Creek landfill are now operating at full capacity. The fifth flare is undergoing further repair but is expected to be back online by 24 March, and a new, sixth flare is expected to be operational by the end of March 2022. BINGO’s development application for the permanent flare system was recently approved by the NSW Department of Planning and Environment. The installation of the permanent flare system is being progressed as quickly and possible and is expected to be completed later this year. 

BINGO’s Eastern Creek facility received an odour complaint on 14 August, and a second on 16 August. In light of these complaints, on 16 August BINGO made the decision to relinquish its temporary approval to accept putrescible waste into its Eastern Creek recycling facility. This approval had been granted to alleviate the pressure on Greater Sydney’s putrescible waste network caused by the recent heavy rain event. All putrescible waste will be removed from the recycling facility by 18 March and no more will be accepted in the facility. 

BINGO continues to undertake ongoing odour mitigation activities on site. If you do detect odour, please contact BINGO’s environmental hotline on 1300 032 747.

Flare maintenance

BINGO advises that three flares in its landfill are currently undergoing repair and maintenance today in response to impacts posed by recent heavy rainfall events. Two flares are expected to be back online on Thursday, 17 March. Two flares continue to operate efficiently, including one high capacity flare (with a capacity double the other flares). A sixth flare is expected to be operational by the end of March 2022.
  

BINGO Eastern Creek facility to assist in critical flood clean up

Following the recent destructive flooding events across NSW, the state government has requested assistance from BINGO’s Eastern Creek facility to assist in the safe disposal of flood waste. BINGO would like to inform the community that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has given BINGO approval to accept flood waste into its Eastern Creek landfill. We would like to provide an assurance to community members that disposal of flood waste will not cause odour issues at BINGO’s facility. BINGO have put in place a number of odour mitigation processes, including our Eastern Creek landfill gas collection and management system. Our Eastern Creek landfill gas collection and management system has been operational since June 2021 and continues to be working effectively.
 
We encourage any concerned community members to call our environmental hotline on 1300 032 747 

Flares back online

BINGO advises that all three flares in its landfill facility at Eastern Creek are now back online.

Landfill flare maintenance

BINGO advises that maintenance on one of the flares in our Eastern Creek landfill is close to completion and the flare is expected to be back online tomorrow, Thursday 26 August. 

Landfill flare under maintenance at Eastern Creek

BINGO advises that one of the flares in our Eastern Creek landfill has been shut down today for maintenance and is currently not operating. The remainder of the gas collection and management system, including the two remaining flares, is operating effectively. 

BINGO will provide further updates on the status of the flare as appropriate. 

Third flare now operational. Fourth flare to be added, along with additional wells

BINGO has installed a third flare as part of its advanced gas collection and management system at its Eastern Creek landfill. The three flares and 27 wells are now operating at close to 100%, and we now intend to add a fourth flare and drill an additional four wells.

The system continues to operate effectively. This has resulted in a substantial reduction in odour emissions from the facility, and subsequently we have not received an odour complaint since 6 June 2021. The EPA has confirmed that they have experienced a similar reduction in odour complaints. 

The installation of the gas collection and management system was fast-tracked in order to resolve the issue as expeditiously as possible. The international contractor installing the new system has advised us that they have never seen a comparable system installed in such a short time-frame.

We continue to conduct odour surveys in surrounding communities multiple times per day, and we have a dedicated team monitoring the surface of the landfill. If an emission site is identified in the landfill, measures are taken as soon as possible to provide further compaction and cover to the area.

While there is further work to be undertaken, we are confident that we now have the matter well in hand. 

Two flares operating at Eastern Creek

BINGO now has two flares operating at its Eastern Creek site as part of the company’s odour mitigation activities (see photo below). The plumes from the flares are a result of the combustion of gas from the landfill, a process that eliminates the odour from this gas. By the close of business on Tuesday 1 June all wells are expected to be connected to these flares and the gas collection and management system will be fully operational. 

The system is already operating efficiently and since the commissioning of the second flare no odour has been detected from the site. BINGO believes it now has the matter well in hand.

It should be noted that there are a significant number of other potential sources of odour in this area, including other landfills, waste transfer stations, food manufacturers, composting facilities, bitumen producers, and major sewer lines.  Ongoing complaints from the community are increasingly unlikely to be caused by BINGO’s facility. The EPA has already confirmed that recent odour surveys have detected odour from other facilities. 

Drilling for final wells underway

Drilling has commenced for the final four wells as part of the advanced gas collection and management system being installed at BINGO’s Eastern Creek facility.

After a significant reduction in odour emissions from the site over the past two weeks since the installation of the third flare, drilling operations may result in a temporary increase in odour emissions from the site.

Drilling operations are expected to continue for the next two to three days.

If you do experience odour, please let us know through our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 or at bingoindustries.com.au/contact-us

BINGO’s gas collection and management system, Eastern Creek

Stage 1 of gas collection and management system installed and operational; Stage 2 to be installed this week

BINGO has completed the installation of Stage 1 of the gas collection and management system at Eastern Creek as part of the company’s ongoing odour mitigation activities.

Stage 1, which includes the installation of a flare and 15 gas wells, was completed last week and work on Stage 2 is well underway. Stage 2 comprises a second, larger flare and an additional six wells and is expected to be completed by the end of this week.

Stage 2 is expected to resolve the matter for the long-term. The modular system currently being installed will allow for future expansion to ensure effective control of odour for the life of the landfill.

Once the landfill gas collection and management system has been installed it will be continually monitored to ensure it is operating effectively. 

BINGO installing odour mitigation gas collection and management system

As part of BINGO’s ongoing odour mitigation activities at Eastern Creek, we have engaged a leading international contractor to install a gas collection and management system in our landfill. 

Work commenced on 13 May 2021 and included the following activities:

• monitoring of landfill gas emissions in the surface of the landfill to identify hot spots for targeted control; and
• drilling and installation of gas wells connected to a flare which will collect and destroy odorous gases before they reach the surface of the landfill.

The system has a modular design that will allow for future expansion to ensure effective control of odour from the site upon operation and in future as landfilling continues

Following commissioning of the landfill gas collection and treatment system it will be continually monitored to ensure it is operated effectively.

The landfill gas and treatment system currently being installed will result in a significant improvement in odour emissions currently emanating from the site. These systems are routinely employed on landfills across the world for treatment of odour arising from landfill gas emissions.

There may be the potential for temporary unpleasant odour during well installation. A number of measures will be employed to control potential odour emissions as a result of drilling, including:

• work will only be undertaken during daylight hours when odours are more readily dispersed and controlled;
• a deodoriser will be employed on site at the drilling locations to treat any odours at the source of drilling;
• any waste exhumed during drilling will be landfilled and covered immediately; 
• gas wells will be covered and capped when left overnight if incomplete; and
• odour monitoring will continue to be undertaken to allow responsive management.

Given BINGO’s commitment to resolving this issue we continue to expedite the delivery of all actions required to mitigate the odour issue at our site. 

The timeline for the installation of the gas management infrastructure is as follows:  

BINGO would like to provide the local community with an update on the actions we have taken to address the odour issue at our Eastern Creek landfill facility and to apologise for its occurrence.

As soon as we were made aware of odour within the local community in early April, we took the following immediate actions:

• commissioning an odour audit and review to assist in identifying potential sources of odour;
• commencing additional daily inspections of the landfill, including leachate tanks, to identify any areas of odour; and
• if areas of odour were identified in the landfill, additional cover, in excess of licence requirements, was applied.

The NSW Environment Protection Agency (EPA) advised BINGO that two potential sources of odour were identified in the landfill - the leachate riser and vent pipe. The high levels of leachate impacting the leachate riser was the result of a one in a hundred-year rain event in March where significant volumes of water entered the landfill, increasing the potential for the production of odour.  Our landfill accepts inert, non-putrescible waste typically derived from construction and demolition and commercial and industrial sources and does not accept putrescible waste (such as waste in domestic red bins and food waste).  Odour is therefore not a typical issue at our facility, as it may otherwise be for other surrounding facilities.

BINGO took the following immediate actions in consultation with the EPA:

• to manage any immediate odour within the vicinity of the leachate riser and vent, applied lime to those areas to disperse any potential odour;
• expanded the scope of the odour audit given feedback on the location of the community complaints from the EPA;
• commissioned a consultant to undertake a gas assessment (taking samples from the leachate tanks and riser) to determine whether there were specific chemical compounds responsible for the odours detected;
• significantly reduced the tip face and application of additional cover and further compaction of fill at various locations across landfill; and
• appointed staff to attend site outside of operating hours to monitor odour.

We then sealed the gaps or cracks in the riser, added mulch as a bio-filter to both the riser and the vent and applied additional cover.

In addition, we have:

• applied activated carbon to impacted areas, as advised by our consultants;
• undertaken leachate riser extension, including waterproofing and leachate pump replacement;
• commenced an investigation into the effectiveness of an activated carbon filter to fit the leachate riser;
• undertaken further monitoring and “hot spot” identification;
• worked with Sydney Water to increase rates of leachate extraction;
• increased the volume of clean soil we apply across the entire landfill and
• investigated gas capture and management options.

We are expediting the installation of new infrastructure to collect and treat landfill gas. This infrastructure will resolve the problem for the long-term.

We are very conscious of the impact odour can have on local residents and once again we sincerely apologise for any discomfort and inconvenience this may have caused you in recent weeks. We are doing everything we can to manage the issue on our site.

We intend to fully resolve this matter as soon as possible and ensure it does not occur again in the future.

We encourage members of the public who may have any questions or concerns to contact us on our environmental hotline at 1300 032 747 or at bingoindustries.com.au/contact-us.

For further information:

Environmental hotline:             1300 032 747

General BINGO enquires:        1300 424 646