WASTE operator Cleanaway has taken to court a civil construction company for a multi-million repair bill after its New Chum dump site was inundated in the 2022 floods.
The garbage company is suing Shamrock Civil Engineering Pty Ltd (Shamrock) for its work in building a section of the dump which needed $30,962,566 million to rehabilitate after flooding.
Cleanaway Pty Ltd and Cleanaway Solid Waste Pty Ltd has filed a counterclaim against the earthworks company in the Supreme Court in Brisbane.
According to the court ruling in the case, Cleanaway contends that as the company that built a large portion of the New Chum dump – Cell 3B east/north – Shamrock should pay the cost to repair the wall and drain a swamp that became a lake after the floods two years ago.
The counterclaim alleges that Shamrock owes Cleanaway the money for the repairs in fixing damage to a wall, seepage and the leachate that created “noxious odours”.
The counterclaim is part of a larger legal action brought by Shamrock against Cleanaway and four insurance companies which the civil engineer obtained policies from before starting work at the site.
Shamrock claims Cleanaway must prove its earthworks caused the damage to the wall.
The civil builders have said it is not enough for the waste contractor to say that it is liable because the downpour happened as Shamrock worked onsite.
Shamrock was told by Cleanaway to take out “four different types of insurance” to protect the asset during construction of Cell 3B.
Supreme Court Justice Paul Freeburn last month ruled that Cleanaway’s cross-claim against Shamrock should be allowed to continue, after the civil engineer made an unsuccessful bid to have it thrown out of court.
“Cleanaway’s argument that the damage occurred in the course of the execution of the work is, in my view, an argument with good prospects,” he stated.
“That lake became putrid as material stored at the dump leached out into the water. The lake started to stink.”
He said that Cleanaway could establish at trial that it suffered a loss attributable to Shamrock.
“It seems plain that Cell 3B East/North was rendered less useful or valuable and time and money was required to restore its usefulness and value,” Justice Freeburn stated.
“It is at least strongly arguable that the putrid lake on the land constitutes a physical alteration or change to the land, not necessarily permanent or irreparable, and that the putrid lake impairs the value or usefulness of the land.
“There is, it seems to me, a good argument that the putrid lake on cell 3B East/North comprised damage to real property.”
The case is due back in court on March 3.
In November, Cleanaway was hit with a $600,000 fine in Ipswich Magistrates Court in relation to the stink despite originally facing $36 million in penalties.
The New Chum dump is due to reopen in coming months.
