A quarry operator has been fined more than $9,000 for pumping thousands of litres of wastewater onto a road reserve that drained into a billabong at Wodonga.
EPA Victoria fined Wodonga company C & K Cartwright Civil Contracting Pty Ltd for depositing turbid wastewater from a quarry onto the Carrolls Lane road reserve.
EPA Northeast Regional Manager Renee Palmer says intelligence received in March this year led officers to the site on the Murray River flood plain, close to the NSW border.
"This was not an accidental spill, there were five hoses laid through a culvert under Carrolls Lane to take the wastewater to a drainage depression in the road reserve. From there it overflowed into the billabong," Ms Palmer said.
"There was no permission to allow the company to dispose of wastewater at that spot and there was the risk of wastewater making its way to Carroll's Creek, which flows into the Murray River" she said.
When EPA officers arrived, one of the hoses was in operation. They measured the volume of wastewater coming from the hose to be approximately nine litres per second, which added up to more than 8,000 litres in 15 minutes.
The company was fined $9,246 for unlawfully depositing more than 1000 litres of waste, 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 epa.vic.gov.au/report-pollution/reporting-pollution
