EPA Victoria says businesses in the Bundoora Industrial Zone have plenty of homework to do on preventing problems with waste, liquid spills and pollution.
Inspection teams from EPA Victoria, Banyule City Council and Melbourne Water have visited 31 premises and provided 73 pieces of compliance advice to the business operators with five enforceable regulatory notices.
Most of the premises were small to medium businesses, including vehicle mechanics, auto recyclers, metal recyclers, car dealers, small manufacturers and warehouses.
EPA Northern Metropolitan Melbourne Regional Manager Jeremy Settle says the inspections concentrated on preventing stormwater pollution from businesses.
"A large number of the businesses we visited had failed to educate themselves on their responsibilities with waste disposal, liquid storage and handling, and stormwater management," Mr Settle said.
"Many had not put in controls to keep spills and overflows contained on the property for proper clean-up and disposal. These are fundamental things when you set out to protect creeks and wetlands."
When it came to waste disposal, many of the businesses could not satisfy their duties as waste producers in understanding where their wastes were going.
The EPA website has a five-step guide for businesses when it comes to preventing contamination of stormwater and protecting our waterways – you can find it at epa.vic.gov.au/about-epa/publications/1304-1
Banyule Councillor Cr Peter Castaldo said "Industrial pollution has very significant consequences, and all businesses have a responsibility to prevent it going into our stormwater drains that lead to our creeks and rivers, home to beautiful wood ducks, insects, fish and other fascinating creatures."
"We recently installed a large litter and floating oil trap in this location, we've got smart sensors detecting pollution in others, but we need to deal with the problem at the source and that's where education and engagement with businesses is so important."
