They stood like sentinels on the coalfields for half a century - but it took less than a minute for the iconic concrete chimney stacks and main water tower of the Hydro Aluminium smelter at Kurri Kurri to crash to earth on Thursday morning.
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The felling of the two smaller 70 metre stacks, the larger 140 metre stack and the 55 metre water tower marked a significant milestone in the demolition and remediation of the site.
Hydro Aluminium Kurri Kurri Managing Director, Richard Brown said he was delighted with the outcome of the demolition, which involved hundreds of hours of planning and logistics
"Our aim is that all of the demolition is carried out safely, and that is why we didn't promote that it was happening, along with the fact that it could have been delayed for a host of reasons such as weather." he said.
"We see this significant milestone for the site as another step forward towards the redevelopment of the land and future economic activity".
The mid-morning demolition was carried out with the assistance of NSW Police, the NSW Transport Management Centre, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Fire & Rescue NSW. SafeWork NSW was also consulted.
"The stacks fell just where we had planned," Hydro Project Manager Andrew Walker said.
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The site is now 70 per cent demolished with most of the three pot lines the casthouse and smaller structures also gone.
"Demolition contractor CMA has been on site for two years now. We expect main demolition works to be complete by the middle of next year." Mr Walker said.
The project is awaiting approval for the construction of a containment cell to be used for the placement of demolition waste that can't be recycled, the contents of an existing 40-plus year-old stockpile of mixed waste and several small quantities of contaminated material.
The rezoning of parts of the site and the bio-certification of between 1200 to 1300 hectares of land that will be conserved as a biodiversity offsetting area is occurring in parallel with the demolition project.
Spent pot lining material that has been stockpiled for the last 20 years is being recycled by a number of contractors.
Hydro is recycling or reusing remaining demolition materials wherever feasible.
The Hydro aluminium smelter closed in 2014 and the company has been working on remediating the site and preparing it for sale since then.
About 65 per cent of the 2000 hectare site has been earmarked for conservation. About 10 per cent of the land will be used for residential purposes, 10 per cent for employment land and 15 per cent for rural land.
Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
Matthew Kelly has worked as a journalist for more than 25 years. He has been working as a general reporter at the Newcastle Herald since 2018. In recent years he has reported on subjects including environment, energy, water security, manufacturing and higher education. He has previously covered issues including the health and environmental impacts of uncovered coal wagons in the Hunter Valley, the pollution of legacy of former industrial sites and freedom of information issues.
