Islington Railyards

Site contamination exists in suburbs near former industrial land as a result of historical practices releasing chemicals into the environment.

Contamination can affect soil and/or groundwater. If the chemicals present in affected soil or groundwater are considered volatile (easily become a vapour / dissolve in air) they can also be found in the air spaces between soil particles as vapour.

For more information on site contamination, please refer to the SA EPA Site Contamination website.

Site contamination may not always be a concern.  For it to be considered a concern complete exposure pathway must be present. This means a source (for example contaminated groundwater in a bore), pathway (extracting that water with a pump), and receptor (a person then ingesting/contacting that water) must be present.

For more information on understanding exposure pathways and contamination risk, please refer to the SA EPA Site Contamination Overview fact sheet.

The contamination dates back many years and resulted from the use of trichloroethene (TCE) solvents at the Islington Railyards. It’s likely that leaks happened over time due to how these solvents were stored and handled.

The contamination source was identified and removed during clean-up efforts. While the exact timing of the leaks is unknown, it is thought to have begun in the early 1900s, based on the site's history and the extent of groundwater impact.

TCE and Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) are common industrial solvents and were used widely as degreasers and metal cleaners. Dichloroethene (DCE) is generally present as the result of the degradation and breakdown of TCE and PCE.

For more information on these chemicals, please refer to the SA Health Chlorinated solvents in groundwater website.

The chemicals found in the groundwater can also turn into gas (or vapour) and move through soil to the surface. From there, the vapours can travel and possibly build up in enclosed spaces like cellars, homes, or basement parking areas.

The main risk to people in homes or commercial buildings would come from long-term exposure. This exposure could happen if the vapours move through the soil and enter buildings through crawl spaces, cracks, or openings in floors or walls. If these vapours build up indoors at high levels over time, they could potentially affect human health.

TCE and PCE and its breakdown products are liquid chemicals that readily flow and evaporate when released to the environment. Depending on how the chemicals were introduced to the soil and the geology of the underlying soil and rock, it is possible that these chemicals migrated through the soil, dissolved in water and then flowed down into the groundwater or became present through breakdown chemical reactions.

Liquid PCE and TCE are denser than water and will sink down through water until it reaches an impermeable barrier. In their pure forms they will then flow along preferential pathways via gravity or pool in confined areas. PCE & TCE that are dissolved in water will migrate with the groundwater in the general direction of groundwater flow.

PCE and TCE vapour will move through soils via the path of least resistance and will decay over time. The TCE at the Islington Railyard site was associated with degreasing metal parts prior to electroplating.

Exposure occurs through using contaminated groundwater for drinking or cooking, and in showers, swimming pools and gardens (via ingestion, inhalation or through the skin).

The contaminated groundwater is approximately 4.7 – 9 metres below the ground surface.

Residents and property owners in affected areas should not use bore water for any use. The bore water should not be used for drinking, irrigation or any other uses.

If you are outside the investigation area, SA Health recommend you should have your bore water tested and deemed safe before being used for drinking, cooking, use in swimming pools or watering edible plants such as homegrown vegetables.

Even if these bores are not affected by industrial pollutants, bore water can be contaminated by other sources such as historical agricultural and horticultural activities and fuel storage. It is also possible for bore water to be unsuitable for use because of the presence of naturally occurring chemicals.

See the SA Health Bore water quality testing website for more information.

Rain and mains water (tap water) are not affected by groundwater contamination.

Home-grown fruit and vegetables are safe to consume if you are not watering them with groundwater (bore water).

To properly manage the site contamination, we have set up a voluntary site remediation plan (VSRP) with the EPA. Regular monitoring of groundwater and soil vapour, following an Auditor-approved plan, is the core part of this VSRP.

Qualified environmental consultants carry out this monitoring, which includes checking rainfall, land use, soil vapour and groundwater in and around the site. The plan also sets specific triggers for further action based on the results.

This monitoring began in 2023 and will continue until 2027, at which point the data will be reviewed with the Auditor and the EPA to determine if more monitoring is needed.

In addition to requiring on-going monitoring, the Auditor recommended that the EPA establish a groundwater prohibition area (GPA) for the site and surrounding areas. The GPA stops people from using groundwater within a defined area, to prevent people being exposed to contaminated groundwater.

We worked with qualified environmental consultants and the Auditor to provide the EPA with information they could use to establish the GPA.