COUNCIL is confident no asbestos risk was posed to the Calala community while a disused water reservoir near a local park was demolished.
One community member who didn’t wish to be identified was worried by asbestos warning signs erected in the demolition zone, off Panorama Road.
The tank, including its foundations, has now been completely razed and the site is no longer fenced off.
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Tamworth Regional Council director of water and waste, Bruce Logan, said the asbestos warning signs were “purely precautionary”.
He said the community could be confident all regulatory requirements of SafeWork NSW were followed during demolition of the water reservoir at Calala and removal of associated underground pipework.
“This included the display of safety signage which is purely precautionary and follows the SafeWork NSW guidelines,” Mr Logan said.
With the old reservoir removed, there is a chance the space could now be re-purposed for community use.
A report will be presented to councillors in the near future detailing a number of potential uses for the Calala site adjacent to Monk Park.
The reservoir on Panorama Road hasn’t been used since 1990 following the construction of the high zone pumping system required to cater for development expansion in Calala.
Council voted to tear down the reservoir in May.
Inspections of the reservoir by Water Operations Staff identified the security fencing surrounding the tank required replacement in the near future.
Rather than renew the infrastructure for the disused asset, it was proposed to simply demolish the reservoir and remove all of the associated infrastructure.
It cost council $60,000 to tear down the old reservoir.
A disused reservoir in Westdale, however, was spared from the bulldozers with council putting the call out for ideas to give new life to the old tank.
The Gunnedah Road reservoir was isolated from service in late 2017.
Mayor Col Murray said at the time it could be beneficial to “test the market” and see what ideas were out there before it was too late.
It was going to cost $80,000 to demolish the reservoir which stands on 1.3 hectare parcel of land.
In a recent statement, council said “future options for use of the site of a water reservoir at Westdale are still being investigated”.
Jacob McArthur
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
Jacob McArthur is opinions editor for The Canberra Times and Australian Community Media. As part of the Canberra Times' production team, he helps the people of Canberra and beyond get the stories they need, when they need them across a range of platforms, while helping maintain a high editorial standard. Before moving to Canberra in 2020, he started with Australian Community Media in 2015 as a journalist for The Northern Daily Leader in Tamworth where he kept a close eye on Tamworth Regional Council. Jacob was also the co-host of ACM's Water Pressure podcast where he and Jamieson Murphy took a deep dive on issues and key decisions arising during one of the region's worst droughts on record.
