HOW WE REDUCED EMISSIONS IMPACTS
‘...contribute to the offsetting of environmental damage with environmental improvement.’
Mr VOYTEK LAPINSKI Environmental Infrastructure Officer City of Whittlesea

Sometimes we had to get heavy
There are times when we have to prosecute organisations that breach the Environment Protection Act 1970. In addition to holding polluters to account, the penalties imposed are often also used to fund environmental projects. While this is a good outcome, we would prefer companies to take precautions and remain vigilant to ensure such breaches do not occur.

What we did
We took action against Mobil Refining Australia Pty Ltd over an incident in which more than 480,000 litres of petrol leaked undetected from a corroded pipe in Newport between December 2004 and December 2006.
The company pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court to a charge of causing an environmental hazard and was ordered to pay $350,000 to fund environmental projects. It was also ordered to pay our costs of $160,000.
Mobil told the court the clean-up was expected to continue for four years and cost $13 million. The company reprocessed the leaked fuel.
Of the funds awarded by the court, $210,000 went to the Williamstown High School for a Jawbone Marine Sanctuary stormwater recycling wetlands project, $110,000 went to the Melbourne Water Corporation for a project to establish teams to monitor and report pollution around drains, and $30,000 was awarded to a care group to establish an ecological monitoring program in the Jawbone Marine Sanctuary.

In another case, a meat processing company – Tasman Group Services Pty Ltd – pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court to three charges of polluting the environment.
The company was ordered to pay $200,000 to fund three environmental projects and our costs of $30,000. The charges related to polluting Stony Creek in Brooklyn with animal effluent, failing to comply with two EPA directions to prevent such discharges, and placing waste where it could gain access to waters.
The company was taken over by the Swift group in 2008 and its name was changed to Swift Australia (Southern) Pty Ltd. It subsequently spent more than $2.5 million on environmental improvements at the site.

Caltex Australia Petroleum Pty Ltd was fined $20,000 and ordered to pay $80,000 to fund an energy efficiency project for permitting 2000 litres of petrol to flow into the Yarra River at Newport via a stormwater system.
The Melbourne Magistrates’ Court was told that the company was unaware that petrol from an earlier leak had escaped its containment system and flowed into the drains. Caltex was also ordered to pay our costs of almost $28,000.

DP World Australia Ltd, one of the world’s largest marine terminal operators, was ordered to pay $80,000 towards the development of a community garden at Docklands after pleading guilty to polluting the atmosphere by spilling more than a tonne of ethyl acrylate at its Port Melbourne facilities. Ethyl acrylate is used as adhesives, fibreglass and plastics and is classified as a dangerous product that could be harmful if inhaled.

In Gippsland, Whelan the Wrecker Pty Ltd and Willis & Palmer (Vic) Pty Ltd pleaded guilty in the Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court to dumping industrial waste from the former Won Wron prison, which was being demolished, at an unlicensed site.
Whelan the Wrecker was ordered to pay $40,000 to improve water quality and biodiversity on the Jack and Albert rivers and to erect signs and upgrade road access to the Upper Morwell River Falls.
Improvements to Tarra-Bulga National Park were funded by the $5000 penalty imposed on Willis & Palmer.

How community groups benefited
Under section 67AC of the Environment Protection Act 1970, a magistrate may direct a company or individual found guilty of environmental pollution to fund a community environmental project instead of, or in addition to, paying a fine.
Last year, two of the beneficiaries of this aspect of the legislation were the Darebin Creek Management Committee, following our action against Amcor Packaging, and the City of Whittlesea, following our action against Melbourne Water.
Amcor was directed to pay $46,000 to the Darebin committee, which spent the bulk of the money on providing stormwater education to 23 education facilities in the Darebin Creek catchment.
Funds were also used to install 300 gutter guards in drains in industrial areas in the Banyule and Darebin municipalities, to prevent litter from entering the stormwater system and being carried into Darebin Creek. Large signs with educational messages were also erected at key access points.
The money awarded to the City of Whittlesea was used to construct frog habitat ponds at the Thomastown East Reserve, in Bundoora, for the endangered growling grass frog.

What you said
“I think this is an excellent avenue for the direction of EPA fines. We have undertaken a two-year school education program aimed at waterway health and pollution. This program fosters environmental stewardship and will assist in the long-term preservation of our waterways.”
Mr Adrian Infanti
Coordinator
Darebin Creek Management Committee

“The Section 67AC program has enabled us to give a nationally significant species (the growling grass frog) a better foothold within the metropolitan area. It has been wonderful being able to contribute to the offsetting of environmental damage with environmental improvement.”
Mr Voytek Lapinski
Environmental Infrastructure Officer
City of Whittlesea