Stop the Red Tide's first win- "ecological disaster" on Great Ocean Road averted!

Clean Ocean Foundation has achieved its goal of forcing the EPA and Wannon Water to
abandon plans for a deep ocean outfall from its Warrnambool Sewage Treatment Plant. This
is a direct result of Clean Ocean Foundation taking the EPAs approval of the initial plan to
VCAT.
In a negotiated settlement Wannon Water and the EPA will now be required to work with
Clean Ocean Foundation to eliminate the need for an outfall pipe and a mixing zone (the
dead zone around an outfall pipe) and introduce disinfection of the toxic waste stream,
something that was not proposed by Wannon Water initially.
CEO John Gemmill says, “For an environmental charity with limited resources, we took a
huge risk beginning this costly legal process but were given no choice by the ghastly
outcome initially approved by the EPA.”
“This agreement will also allow us to unearth the true cost industrial waste places on the
Warrnambool community’s and ultimately help us in our goal to reform the system so that
the polluter is required to pay a fair price for its impact on the environment.”
“This issue is especially important in relation to Port Fairy outfall, that also discharges a
combined domestic and industrial effluent stream, where concerns have been raised after
two people were seriously injured after surfing close to the outfalls mixing zone.”
“Our Stop the Red Tide campaign will continue until funding at a national, state and local
level is made available to protect all Australian recreational users and marine environments
from the impact of these deadly mixing zones in line with our National Outfall Upgrade
Strategy.
“We would also like to thank our supporters including the Prior Family Foundation whose
philanthropy was critical factor in our landmark win.”

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We aren't stopping here- help us give Australian outfalls the class A+ treatment they deserve!

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