EPA Victoria has been increasingly targeting pollution from wastewater going in to stormwater drains and EPA Southern Metropolitan Region officers have fined a stone cutting business $2,000 for allowing their runoff to contaminate a nearby waterway.
Century of Stone Ltd trading as Century Marble in Boundary Rd, Braeside cuts stone and marble for uses such as feature kitchen benchtops.
The stone is cut while wet to reduce dust emissions, but the resulting slurry was allowed to exit the factory where it then flowed down to the stormwater drain and into Mordialloc Creek.
"The impact of waste-contaminated liquid into offsite stormwater systems is a serious issue. The suspension of the fine stone or marble particles in the water used in the cutting process once discharged can reduce or even block light from penetrating into waterways and can impact aquatic life including fish and vegetation," EPA Southern Metro Regional Manager Viranga Abeywickrema said.
"We've issued a notice to the business that it must stop using this method of cutting stone without proper controls in place to ensure this discharge doesn't reoccur," Mr Abeywickrema said.
"We all have a duty to protect the environment and we expect every business to use all available methods to reduce or eliminate pollution," he said.
There's advice to businesses on how to prevent water pollution on EPA's website: epa.vic.gov.au/for-business/find-a-topic/prevent-water-pollution
