By Benjamin Millar
The alleged mastermind behind the illegal dumping of millions of litres of dangerous chemicals in the warehouse that erupted in the 2018 Tottenham fire is facing more than 50 charges over similar stockpiling at five other sites.
Graham Leslie White, 58, has been charged with 55 offences under the Dangerous Goods Act, consisting of 11 offences for each of the four warehouses he occupied in Epping and one in Campbellfield.
WorkSafe is alleging that White failed to take all reasonable precautions to prevent any fire or explosion of dangerous goods that were under his control, despite knowing this failure could endanger the safety or health of people, property or the environment.
White is also accused of breaching a series of regulations and failing to notify WorkCover of the presence of an excess quantity of dangerous goods at each site.
WorkSafe is continuing to investigate White’s involvement in the Tottenham chemical stockpile and has taken control of the removal of up to 10 million litres of waste still sitting at the site.
United Firefighters Union branch secretary Peter Marshall welcomed the charges against White.
“Illegal dumpers create toxic timebombs that make an already dangerous job unacceptably more dangerous,” he said.
“Aside from the exposure to toxic chemicals, not knowing what is in those illegal warehouses is like trying to fight a fire with one arm tied behind your back
