A focus on sustainability has delivered inspiring outcomes for the team that is decommissioning Liddell Power Station.
With work now more than 90 per cent complete, AGL's Liddell Transition team has recycled or reused 2,646 tonnes of potential waste.
This includes repurposing more than 45 kilometres of conveyor belt, 800,000 litres of transformer oil and more than 150,000 litres of turbine oil.
Alternate uses and new homes have also been found for everything from fabric filter bags, bearings and office furniture.
The plant also contains about 70,000 tonnes of metal, including 3000 tonnes of highly valuable non-ferrous metals such as copper and chromium. By comparison, the Sydney Harbour Bridge contains only 50,000 tonnes of steel.
There's also about 120,000 tonnes of concrete that will be crushed and recycled.
The money made from recycling materials will help offset the $225 million that AGL has budgeted for decommissioning and demolition works.
"Decommissioning work is scheduled for completion in May and AGL continues to work with relevant regulatory bodies in our application for NSW State Significant Development Approval to safely demolish Liddell Power Station," an AGL spokesman said.
"A determination is expected late this year and the timeline for demolition will be confirmed at that point."
Significant progress has been made on the rehabilitation of Liddell Ash Dam with 92 hectares now capped to a safe, stable and non-polluting state.
The Hunter Energy Hub is also starting to take shape on the 10,000-hectare site.
The project will include an estimated $1 billion-plus portfolio of industries including agriculture, clean energy and firming technologies, composting, coal ash recycling, green metals and advanced manufacturing.
It is expected that the hub could eventually employ more than 1000 people and serve as a major catalyst for future economic growth in the region.
"This is not just about the transition of a single site, it is the transition of the entire region from a very coal intensive region into a renewable space," AGL chief operating officer Markus Brokhof said previously.
"It will require a huge effort, not just from AGL but from all of the players. Where you have examples of successful transition overseas it is always the result of a collective effort."
AGL is working closely with a number of Upper Hunter based First Nations businesses during this process, with nearly $1 million injected into Indigenous procurement to date.
AGL has also formed a partnership with Arts Upper Hunter and Upper Hunter Homeless Support as part of the Liddell decommissioning and demolition projects.
The innovative program features 16 artist residencies across the process of shut-down, decommissioning and eventually demolition.
The centrepiece of the program will be an exhibition that will launch on the June long weekend at Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre and Singleton Art & Cultural Centre, running for eight weeks.
- Innovation Ready is an Out of the Square initative produced in collaboration with Hunter Innovation Festival and the Newcastle Herald to highlight the region as an innovation powerhouse. The videos can be viewed at newcastleherald.com.au and innovationready.com.au
