A former director of SKM Services, Robert Italiano, 51, has admitted to atmospheric pollution linked to a significant fire at a recycling plant in Coolaroo on July 13, 2017. This incident forced local residents to evacuate due to the release of toxic fumes. The County Court in Melbourne was informed that firefighters struggled to completely extinguish previous fires at the site, which created conditions for further blazes.
Italiano pleaded guilty to charges of polluting the atmosphere, acknowledging that his actions rendered the environment “noxious or offensive, harmful to health, and detrimental to any beneficial use.” Witnesses described the smoke as “acrid” and “disgusting,” prompting action from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).
In defence, barrister Sally Flynn KC indicated that before the July incident, Italiano had been striving to manage the plant’s recycling output. SKM was processing approximately 60% of Victoria’s recyclable waste, yet an earlier fire on February 28 had forced large amounts of recyclable materials to be stored outside—an unfortunate situation Italiano accepted was avoidable. The court heard that additional fires followed, including the critical July blaze, leading to further environmental concerns.
Flynn argued that external factors contributed to these incidents, including a leak of E. coli from a neighbouring factory and inadequate fire control from the Metropolitan Fire Brigade. She claimed that a fire on July 9 was not fully extinguished and led to the blaze that escalated on July 12 and culminated in the major incident on July 13. Despite claims that firefighting resources were nearby, they were reportedly not deployed promptly.
The defence pointed out that the circumstances of the Coolaroo fire were less severe than those of the Hazelwood open cut mine fire in 2014, which burned for weeks and caused numerous hospitalisations. Italiano’s lawyers contended that no charges were laid against directors from the Hazelwood incident, pleading for his case to be viewed with similar leniency.
Conversely, EPA barrister Colin Mandy SC urged for a significant fine and a conviction, arguing that Italiano’s failure to manage waste levels at the plant contributed to the severity of the situation, stating that an excess of approximately two million tonnes of rubbish was received compared to what was processed in the lead-up to the fire.
SKM Services has since been liquidated and was absent from the hearing, having been found guilty by a jury of aggravated pollution and three charges of atmospheric pollution. Sentencing for both Italiano and SKM Services is scheduled for April 16.