27/08/2026
‼️Gary Mack: Is Cambridge facing a massive Tamala Park Waste Facility bill and environmental fallout?‼️
Mayor Gary Mack - Town of Cambridge is the Chair of the Mindarie Regional Council (MRC). Tamala Park is a major landfill south of Clarkson, managed by MRC for seven member councils including Cambridge. Regulators say elevated leachate (toxic liquid), enough to fill "40 Optus Stadiums", is likely seeping through the landfill liner and affecting groundwater quality.
The financial stakes are staggering. Reported treatment scenarios range from “tens of millions of dollars to more than $1 billion,” with member councils potentially exposed to “costs in the hundreds of millions of dollars.” We should all be very concerned and serious questions need to be raised about its potential liability. Where were the risk assessments?
⁉️Mayor Mack, how did it reach this point, what safeguards failed, and what are you doing to protect Cambridge ratepayers from reputational harm from environmental damage and a potentially enormous bill?
We are very interested to hear the outcome of tonight's MRC meetings. As raised by Wake up Joondalup -
"Because while we contemplate the sheer scale of the clean-up ahead, the MRC has called two Special Council Meetings tonight.
One of them is about “Protective Appeals”. So, in the face of learning the scale of the leachate problem, are the MRC seriously considering appealing DWER’s regulatory action rather than focusing on how to close the tip and clean up the mess?
The other appears to concern the Waste to Energy Contracts member councils have been squabbling over. Are they still considering diverting their waste to Waste to Energy, in the midst of this mess? With less waste going into the landfill, it will surely take longer to reach the final profile required for capping and closure. How does that help?
Talk about fiddling while Rome stinks!
Perhaps these items are actually far more sensible than their titles make them sound. But since the reports are confidential, we’ll just have to wait and see what decisions emerge from tonight’s meetings.
Because right now, MRC looks like it’s up to its neck in it."
https://www.watoday.com.au/national/western-australia/city-seeks-state-help-as-bin-juice-issue-grows-to-40-optus-stadiums-20260826-p60rvl.html
Follow Wake up Joondalup for more information.
Town of Cambridge
The City of Perth will advocate to the state government for help with the Tamala Park landfill as bin juice issue grows to 40 Optus Stadium worth of liquid.
