The New South Wales government is "confident asbestos contamination at Pirtek Stadium will not delay the start of construction" on the new A$300M ($222M) Western Sydney Stadium at Parramatta, according to Georgina Robinson of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. Planning approval for the 30,000-seat stadium is "expected to come through by the end of next month and with the government close to choosing which of the final three construction companies will be awarded the project, demolition is expected to start early next year." The site of the proposed "state-of-the-art rectangular stadium is peppered with asbestos contamination as a result of its history as a dumping ground" for construction manufacturer James Hardie, with the Environment Impact Statement warning it could pose an "unacceptable risk to future site users/workers if not appropriately managed." It will fall to the successful bidder -- down to shortlisters Brookfield Multiplex, John Holland or Lendlease -- to "draw up a detailed asbestos management plan in accordance with environment and planning laws." Minister for Sport Stuart Ayres said on Thursday that he was "confident the safe removal of the contaminated material, understood to be about three tonnes worth of soil on filled-in sites, would not affect the project's timeline." Ayres: "At this stage we're not envisioning any delays, we knew there would be contamination in the site, we'd planned for that. You're never quite sure of what all the contamination is going to be, but we built that into our timelines." Ayres added that the contamination "was foreshadowed from the beginning and would not impact construction or budget timelines, nor plans by the Western Sydney Wanderers and Parramatta Eels to give chairs from the current stadium to members as souvenirs." The new stadium "is due to open" in '19 (SMH, 11/17).
