THE Wauchope quarry operated by the M.A. Roche Group has been ordered to pay $76,000 because of water pollution.
The company, which operates the Volcanic Resources quarry in Wauchope, has been fined $22,000 and ordered to pay the Environment Protection Authority’s legal and investigation costs totalling $39,200 after pleading guilty in the Land and Environment Court to two charges of water pollution.
Company director Mark Roche was also fined $5000 and ordered to pay legal costs of $9800 for obstructing an authorised officer.
The charges related to incidents in June 2012 when sediment-laden water leaked through the quarry’s dam wall and into an unnamed creek flowing into Herons Creek.
Welcoming the findings, the EPA chief environmental regulator, Mark Gifford, said it sent a strong message that all operators must work within the law and co-operate with the EPA during investigations.
“The discharges from the quarry polluted and degraded the creek’s water quality and had the potential to cause serious harm to the environment,” he said.
“This situation could have been easily prevented if the quarry had properly constructed and maintained its dam walls and monitored them to ensure that no polluted water leaked into nearby creeks.
“It is also a clear lesson to all operators that they must be willing to co-operate with our officers and provide all the necessary information so situations like this can be brought to an end quickly and effectively, with as minimal impact on the environment as possible.”
As well as the fines and legal and investigation costs, M.A. Roche Group was ordered to publicise the outcome in newspapers in Port Macquarie and Newcastle.
The M.A. Roche Group were contacted by the Independent and offered the opportunity to comment on the Land and Environment Court case, but declined to do so.
