By Ewen McRae
An application to expand the landfill operations at Maddingley Brown Coal has been withdrawn.
The Maddingley Brown Coal site at Tilleys Road handles landfill and recycling materials, as well as mines for coal.
An application by MBC to amend the planning permit for the waste portion of the facility was submitted to the council in September 2018, and sought to include household waste that contains putrescible organics, waste from litter bins collected by or on behalf of local councils, manure and night soil, disposable nappies, incontinence pads or sanitary napkins, food and animal waste.
Moorabool council was due to consider the application at a special meeting of council on September 30, however the application was withdrawn on September 10.
Community planning manager Henry Bezuidenhout said MBC may re-apply to amend the planning permit.
“Council will not have the opportunity to consider this now,” Mr Bezuidenhout said.
“We have no indication as to whether the applicant will apply for another planning amendment, but this is a possibility.
“We will continue to keep the community informed of any developments, and wish to thank everyone affected who took the time to make submissions.”
The planning application had been a source of unease in the community, with several residents concerned about the impacts of expanding the landfill.
Bacchus Marsh Grammar, which lies less than three kilometres from MBC, flagged moving its campus if the planning application was approved
MBC environmental manager Tim Tillig said they were still considering the site’s future.
“MBC has considered a range of additional strategic uses for the site and these are currently under assessment,” Mr Tillig said.
“At the right time, we will engage with state and local government stakeholders, as well as the local community on these initiatives.”
