A sinkhole roughly 8–10 m wide and several metres deep has opened on the AJ Burkitt Reserve sporting oval in Heidelberg, directly adjacent to the North East Link tunnel alignment in Melbourne’s northeast. Victorian Infrastructure Delivery Authority has confirmed the “surface hole” is in the vicinity of active tunnelling operations, leading to a work pause while engineers and emergency crews carry out geotechnical investigations and monitoring. No injuries or structural damage have been reported, but the area remains fully cordoned off pending cause determination and stability assessment.

Fines exceeding £90,000 and a 26‑week suspended prison sentence have been imposed after 218 m² of asbestos-containing materials and debris were illegally disturbed and cleared at a demolition site on Greenheath Road, Cannock. Sohan Group Limited was fined £74,900 for failing to appoint a principal contractor under CDM 2015, while Maize Metals Limited was fined £13,400 for proceeding with demolition despite an asbestos management survey identifying ACMs. Unlicensed contractor Disa Properties’ representative, Ali Raza Baig, received a suspended custodial sentence, five-year director disqualification and curfew for arranging unlicensed asbestos removal.

Welsh Government has set a record £85M budget for flood and coastal erosion risk management in 2026/27, its largest single-year allocation for defences. Funding will support schemes under the National Strategy for Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, targeting high-risk communities along major estuaries and exposed coastlines. Designers can expect increased demand for reinforced concrete and rock armour sea walls, upgraded earth embankments, and higher-capacity culverts and outfalls to cope with more intense rainfall and storm surges.