Contaminated BP servo site left in limbo by COVID-19 fuelling Mount Magnet Shire’s anger

BP blamed COVID-19 restrictions for interrupting its national remediation program after leaving a Mid West shire with a contaminated service station for four years. Meanwhile, in July, the corporation opened the biggest service in WA in Muchea. The small community of Mount Magnet has been left asking ‘what about us?’ The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) identified contamination at BP’s Mount Magnet site in 2016, and the corporate giant shut down the site. The Department found hydrocarbons from petrol and diesel above appropriate levels in the soil and pure petroleum floating in the ground-water at the site. After the report, BP put a fence around the building and closed the store. Meanwhile, that same year, The West Australian reported BP purchased land in Muchea for a new service station. At the time, BP estimated the Muchea project would cost $15 million. According to the department's records, BP said its next “ground water monitoring event” in Mount Magnet will take place in November this year. If the Department deems BP has not taken appropriate action at the site, it could issue a Clean-Up Notice. Failure to comply with such a notice can result in a $2.5 million penalty and a daily fine of $500,000 for corporations. Over at the Shire of Mount Magnet, there have been calls for BP to address the issue facing the site it left behind, as it was both a health concern for residents and an eyesore on its main drag. “How can BP ignore their social and environmental responsibilities while simultaneously building new sites such as the one at Muchea to promote their brand and business model,” Shire president Jorgen Jensen and chief executive Kelvin Matthews said in a statement on Monday. The Shire also said it would like to explore alternative uses for the site, but BP had “ignored (its) obligation to remediate the contamination at the site and demolish the derelict building”. A BP spokesperson said: “The BP team continues to explore options for the future usage of the Mt Magnet site. This may include the site being repurposed or reopening under a different owner.” BP said it had worked with the DWER to complete an environmental assessment and the site continued to be monitored in line with the department’s requirements. “Sites within our network are developed in different ways and with different timelines,” the spokesperson said. “Whilst this site’s redevelopment has not happened as soon as we’d hoped, we remain committed to progressing our plans.”