Published on Wednesday, 5 August 2026 at 12:03:06 PM
On 3 August 2026, Mindarie Regional Council (MRC) was issued with an Environmental Protection Notice (EPN) by the WA Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER).
Simultaneously DWER notified MRC that it had rejected two Works Approval Applications (piggyback linerand leachate management area).
Environmental Protection Notice (EPN)
The EPN sets out requirements on MRC which DWER has summarised as follows:
- Provide an updated plan to quantify leachate volumes and levels across the premises
- Prepare a Leachate Removal Plan to remove leachate from the premises
- Provide an updated Landfill Capping and Closure Plan for the premises
- Implement specified measures to improve the Landfill Gas Extraction System
- Prepare a report that documents a Surface Water Management Strategy for the premises
- Provide a geotechnical landfill stability assessment and report compliant with industry standards.
Works approval applications
The piggyback liner would have allowed MRC to bring the landfill up to the final profile for closure, including by putting in a liner for the final incomplete – and currently unlined – area of the landfill.
The leachate management area would have allowed MRC to manage the amount of liquid within the landfill through evaporation, which is the industry standard method by which leachate volumes are controlled in Western Australia.
MRC’s priorities have always been clear: to protect the environment, close the landfill responsibly, and maintain essential waste disposal services for the nearly 850,000 people living in our seven-member local government areas.
Consequently, DWER’s decision (to reject both applications) creates a great deal of uncertainty.
What happens next?
Over the past two years, MRC has endeavoured to work collaboratively with DWER as part of its long-standing commitment to management and minimisation of odour impacts on residents now living in the vicinity of Tamala Park Waste Management Facility.
The measures implemented by MRC have had a significant and positive impact, reducing the number of odour reports received from more than 300 in August 2024 to less than 40 in July 2026 – a reduction of nearly 90 per cent.
MRC has also conducted extensive testing, analysis and studies of methods to effectively reduce the volume of leachate within the landfill, all pointing to evaporation as the best solution.
MRC is disappointed by DWER’s decision. MRC will take some time to consider the implications of the decision for MRC, its seven member councils, and the nearly 850,000 people who depend on the service we provide.
ENDS
About MRC: Mindarie Regional Council (MRC) is one of Western Australia’s biggest waste management authorities, providing a comprehensive waste disposal service to local government authorities and residents in the Perth Metro Area.
For more information, visit mrc.wa.gov.au
Information for media: For enquiries relating to this release or any other questions from journalists regarding MRC, please contact communications@mrc.wa.gov.au or call 0417 252 227.
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