Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) has fined a Portland engineering firm more than $8,000 after noise complaints from residents with homes near its Cellana Court premises.
EPA South West Region Manager Carolyn Francis said Portland Precision Engineering Pty Ltd failed to meet the deadline on an EPA Pollution Abatement Notice requiring actions to resolve the noise problem.
"This has been going on for nearly two years, and the company's earlier efforts to reduce the noise from its premises had failed to bring it within the limit required by state regulations," Ms Francis said.
"We placed a noise logging device in the yard at a nearby house in April 2018, and found the premises was still exceeding daytime zonal noise limits by between 6 and 9 decibels," she said.
"To the human ear, that would sound nearly twice as loud as it should have been."
An EPA officer reported hearing grinding, sawing, cutting, hammering, banging and clanging, trucks on the move and idling, and a compressor starting up and running.
"EPA then issued a legally enforceable Pollution Abatement Notice (PAN) requiring the company to call in a qualified noise consultant to prepare a plan, and for the company to implement the plan to bring its noise down to a level allowed under state regulations," Ms Francis said.
The company did not complete the improvements recommended by the noise consultant until seven weeks after the deadline. The works included installing:
- a solid noise barrier along the border of the premises
- acoustic insulation panels inside the building
- sealing around doors and gaps, and
- acoustic paneling to replace any unused doors
EPA also required the company to engage a noise engineer to conduct monitoring to confirm that noise levels among neighbouring homes now meet the regulations
"Companies must ensure they meet the requirements of EPA notices by the compliance date; a Pollution Abatement Notice is there to protect the environment and human health, and must be taken seriously," Ms Francis said.
Under the Environment Protection Act 1970 and the Infringements Act 2008, the company has the right to have the decision to issue the infringement notice reviewed or alternatively to have the matter heard and determined by a court.
