We make contaminated sites buildable.bankable.compliant.certain.
Surefire Management Group is a boutique environmental consultancy delivering senior-led assessments, remediation and EPA sign-off — fast, transparent and commercially sharp.
Contaminated LandSite AssessmentsAsbestosGroundwaterSoil RemediationWaste ClassificationUPSSTurnkey Project ManagementEPA Victoria Compliance
Why Surefire
Big-firm capability. Boutique velocity.
Based in Brunswick West and working across all of Victoria, we strip the bureaucracy out of environmental consulting — leaving just the expertise.
Senior consultants. On your site. Every time.
No juniors learning on your budget. The principal who scopes your project runs it through to sign-off — with direct lines, straight answers and zero hand-offs.
1 day
Typical response time on new enquiries — because settlement dates, demolition permits and construction programs don't wait.
🎯Commercially sharp
Every recommendation is framed around your budget, program and approvals pathway — not consultant hours.
🛡️Defensible outcomes
Reports written to survive scrutiny from EPA Victoria, auditors, financiers and future buyers.
🤝Transparent pricing
Clear scopes, fixed fees wherever possible, and no surprise variations buried in fine print.
Capabilities
Seven services. One accountable team.
Swipe through our core capabilities — or talk to us about a custom scope for complex, multi-phase sites.
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Environmental Site Assessments
Due diligence assessments, PSI & DSI investigations, planning permits and GED compliance.
Free scoping call — site history, objectives, constraints, honest first read.
Investigate
Targeted sampling designed to answer the right questions the first time.
Report
Clear, defensible reporting that regulators and financiers accept.
Remediate
Pragmatic, risk-based remediation managed end-to-end on your behalf.
Validate
EPA validation and sign-off — certainty delivered, project unlocked.
Track Record
Projects & case studies.
A selection of engagements across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria.
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Property Development
Contaminated Land Management — Brunswick Redevelopment
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Petroleum
UPSS Remediation — Metro Service Station Portfolio
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Industrial
Phase 2 ESA — South Melbourne Industrial Precinct
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Landfill
Groundwater Monitoring Network — Northern Victoria
Knowledge Hub
Groundwork — straight answers.
Practical guides on contamination for owners, developers and builders. No jargon, no fluff — just what you need to know.
Contaminated Land
Think your land might be contaminated? Six signs worth checking
Most contamination is invisible from the surface — but a site almost always leaves clues. What to look for before you buy, develop or dig.
Read the guide →
Property Development
Found contamination? Why it doesn't have to kill your deal
Contamination rarely kills deals — uncertainty does. Why a positive finding is a cost item, not a stop sign, and how early knowledge becomes leverage.
Read the guide →
Remediation
Dealing with contamination: a straight-talking playbook
Four steps separate sites that get unlocked from sites that stall — starting with getting qualified, experienced people involved early.
Read the guide →
"The team at Surefire helped us through a massive issue. We felt in safe hands the whole way — they delivered, and resolved what was a massive deal blocker."
Development Director
Melbourne Property Group
"Surefire saved the deal. Contamination had stalled our settlement for months — they turned it into a clear, costed pathway and got us to completion."
Acquisitions Manager
Residential Developer
"Senior people, straight answers, no surprises. What looked like a project-killer was resolved in weeks, not months."
Director
Civil Contracting Group
"They managed our problem from start to solution. One phone call, and it was handled."
Portfolio Owner
Service Stations · Metro Melbourne
Knowledge Hub · Contaminated Land
Think your land might be contaminated? Six signs worth checking
Most contamination is invisible from the surface — but a site almost always leaves clues. Before you buy, develop or dig, run through this checklist.
The site's past lives. Former service stations, factories, dry cleaners, market gardens and filled land are among Victoria's most common contamination sources. Old aerial photos and historical titles tell you a lot.
Suspicious fill. Building rubble, ash, slag or cement-sheet fragments in the soil mean uncontrolled fill — and uncontrolled fill means unknowns.
Staining and odours. Dark hydrocarbon staining, or chemical and fuel smells — especially after rain or during excavation — are classic red flags.
Stressed vegetation. Bare patches and plants that struggle for no obvious reason can point to what's underneath.
Leftover infrastructure. Vent pipes, fill points, old tanks, pits and bores indicate underground storage you can't see.
Paperwork flags. An Environmental Audit Overlay in the planning scheme, EPA notices, or gaps in the site's history all warrant a closer look.
None of these prove contamination — and their absence doesn't rule it out. The only way to know is targeted sampling. A Preliminary Site Investigation is fast and inexpensive compared to discovering a problem after you've settled or started works.
Suspect something? Get a straight answer before it becomes a surprise.
Found contamination? Why it doesn't have to kill your deal
It's the phone call every developer dreads: the assessment came back positive. But here's what decades of contaminated-land work teaches you — contamination rarely kills deals. Uncertainty does.
It's a cost item, not a stop sign
The vast majority of contaminated sites in Victoria are redeveloped successfully. Once contamination is characterised, it becomes what every other site issue is — a scoped cost with a timeline.
The rules work in your favour
Victoria's framework is risk-based: land needs to be made suitable for its intended use, not returned to pristine condition. A warehouse doesn't need the same outcome as a childcare centre — and your remediation strategy and budget should reflect that.
Early knowledge is negotiating power
Contamination discovered during due diligence is leverage — price adjustments, vendor contributions, extended settlements. Contamination discovered after settlement is your problem alone. The order matters more than the dirt.
Put real numbers in the feasibility
With early investigation, waste classifications and remediation scope become line items in your feasibility instead of blowouts halfway through civil works.
Deals die from unknowns. A clear, costed pathway keeps yours alive — and your development dreams with it.
Dealing with contamination: a straight-talking playbook
You've confirmed contamination on your site — what now? Four steps separate sites that get unlocked from sites that stall.
1. Get qualified help — early
This is not a do-it-yourself problem. You want senior consultants with deep EPA Victoria experience, established auditor relationships and a track record on sites like yours — involved before decisions get expensive. One accountable point of contact beats a chain of subcontractors.
2. Investigate once, properly
Cheap, thin investigations get repeated — that's how sites end up assessed three times. A well-designed preliminary and detailed site investigation answers the questions that matter the first time.
3. Plan remediation around your end use
A pragmatic Remediation Action Plan matches the method to your land use and program — reuse and containment where appropriate, not reflexive dig-and-dump. This is routinely a six-figure difference.
4. Validate and document
Validation reporting and clearance documentation are what regulators, auditors, financiers and future buyers rely on. Done properly, your problem stays solved.
Handled this way, contamination becomes a line item with a date and a cost — not a crisis.
