Homeowners who surrendered their properties in the summer months as part of the ACT government's Mr Fluffy buyback program are being invited to return to their gardens to retrieve plants and small trees.
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Homeowners will need a free permit to return over a three-day period of their choosing to the end of July, 2015.
Asbestos taskforce head Andrew Kefford said only smaller items could be removed. "If you can dig it out and take it away in a wheelbarrow, you can remove it, " he said. Using machines to remove big trees was not allowed.
Mr Kefford said the land that was surrendered was now territory land. "When we take possession of a property we lock them, so basically this is unlocking a yard for access," he said.
A plant retrieval permit does not give permission for homeowners to enter affected homes or remove other items such as gazebos, decking or water tanks. If owners cannot remove their plants in three days, they can seek an additional free permit.
Rodney's Plants Plus at Pialligo and horticulturalists Mick Burgess and Dennis Dempsey were working with the taskforce to help homeowners.
Nine days remain before the buyback program closes on June 30. Of the 1021 affected 'Mr Fluffy' properties, 997 homeowners have opted to take up the voluntary buyback program, and 943 offers to purchase have been made to owners, totalling $639.6 million.
848 offers to purchase have been accepted by homeowners and 575 houses are currently owned by the ACT Government (ie. been surrendered through the buyback program).
Financial help worth $7.2 million has been provided to homeowners to date, such as through relocation support.
