Football games may return to a lead-affected Wangaratta sports ground in June, more than two years after its initial closure.
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By the end of May/June we should be fairly close to resowing grass and having the oval playable again
- Ken Clarke
Excavation works to remove about 1200 cubic metres of contaminated soil from North Wangaratta Recreation Reserve began on Tuesday.
Wangaratta mayor Ken Clarke said this stage of the restoration should be completed by the end of next week.
“We’re very excited and pleased that at long last something’s happening out there and we’re getting it back to what it should be, which is a recreation reserve,” he said.
“I don’t believe myself that we would have the oval ready for the commencement of the 2018 football season, but by the end of May/June we should be fairly close to resowing grass and having the oval playable again.”
North Wangaratta Football Netball Club has not been allowed full use of its oval since May 2016, which has affected its finances and playing numbers.
President Gary O’Keefe said the unusual circumstances meant authorities “don’t know what to do with us”.
“If we’d been burnt down, they would have come in and rebuilt everything for us,” he said. “If it was flooded, it would be the same deal, but because it’s lead, no bugger knows what’s going on.
“But now that the works have started, at least we might be able to get some direction out of everybody.”
Tenders for the next stage of the oval remediation closed last week. These include new drainage, irrigation, new fencing, player shelters and goal posts and replacing the soil and turf.
The soil now being removed will go to Wangaratta Clay Target Club, the contamination source through past skeet shooting practices.
Gun club vice-president Brian Reid said the stockpile would be inspected by the environmental consultants.
“So there’ll be no risk of any leaching out of it or any further contamination, it will be just deposited there well out of the way of any public access,” he said.
Mr Reid said his club was pleased to see the works start.
“I often hear the comment, ‘Why is it all taking so long?’,” he said. “But that’s a difficult one to answer other than the wheels of bureaucracy don’t always turn as quick as people might like them to.”
