Evison Grain Pty Ltd has received a $5,928 fine from EPA Victoria after a spill at its Drouin premises sent nearly 1,000 litres of canola oil into a stormwater drain leading to Stony Creek.
Following up on a pollution report, EPA officers inspected the Weerong Rd premises on 30 April 2025 and were told a tank had ruptured while being moved, sending the oil into a stormwater drain along the boundary of the property.
The company had used sawdust to soak up the spill and a biological product to break up the oil in the drain, but the EPA officers found there was still a strong cooking oil smell and grass leading to the stormwater drain was coated in an oily substance.
EPA Gippsland Regional Manager Zac Dornom says cooking oil might seem harmless, but it can do serious damage to the environment.
Vegetable oils stick to aquatic plants and animals in waterways causing suffocation, and breakdown products from the oil are toxic to microscopic waterway life," Mr Dornom said.
"We gave the company compliance advice on the clean-up, and liquid storage and handling, then we issued an Improvement Notice requiring them to take measures to minimise the risk of any future spills" he said.
EPA fined Evison Grain Pty Ltd for the unlawful deposit of between 50 and 1000 litres of waste into the environment, an offence under the Environment Protection Act 2017.
Under the Environment Protection Act 2017 and the Infringements Act 2006, the operator has the right to have the infringement notice reviewed or be considered by a court.
Members of the public can report pollution by calling EPA's 24-hour hotline on 1300 372 842 or providing details online at Make a report (epa.vic.gov.au/make-report).
