Clean-up underway on old Empire Bay marina site

Work is progressing on the clean-up of the contaminated former Empire Bay Marina site with the first stage of the project now complete.

Crown Lands in the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) has finished Stage 1 work which included removal of the dilapidated boatshed, concrete hardstand and slipway above the high tide mark, and the underground fuel tanks.

Three 5,000-litre fuel tanks were recently excavated last week together with 9,000 litres of waste groundwater, with the area then backfilled with clean sand.

Stage 2 work will now get underway including further site contamination testing and analysis, a Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment, and the development of a Remediation Action Plan (RAP) to guide how the rest of the site will be cleaned up.

Once the RAP is prepared, Crown Lands will lodge a further development application with Central Coast Council to finalise site remediation, including removal of remaining pylons.

Further community consultation will occur on memorial options for the former boatshed and will be included in the DA before it is lodged with the council.

The former marina closed in late 2020 after Crown Lands revoked the operator’s licence due to ongoing significant breaches of conditions and failure to rectify issues despite repeated requests.

Building and engineering reports found the boatshed had major structural defects and was unsafe.

Site assessments found the former marina was significantly contaminated prompting a clean-up order from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).

A community campaign to save and restore the historic boatshed failed.

Crown Lands Executive Director of Land and Asset Management Greg Sullivan said the aim of remediation work was to clear the site of contamination so it can be safely reused as waterfront public open space.

“Cleaning up this contaminated reserve land is essential to protect the environment and community health and restore the site so that it can once again be reopened for public use,” he said.

“This waterfront area will support recreational activities and provide the local community with a quality space (in which) to relax, exercise, and appreciate the restored scenic amenity.”