Ku-ring-gai Council has been issued a $30,000 Penalty Infringement Notice after a leachate leak from a legacy landfill beneath the North Turramurra Golf Course in July 2025.
The NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) was made aware of the incident on 10 July, when council reported that a pump used to manage leachate from the old landfill failed allowing contaminated water to enter a nearby unnamed creek.
EPA Executive Director Operations Steve Beaman said Council was fortunate the incident didn't escalate further.
"The risk here for the surrounding environment was very high and real as the creek flows towards Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park," Mr Beaman said.
"When our officers collected water samples from the creek, they found the slow flow of the leak meant polluted water was contained to around a 30-metre stretch of creek, so fortunately pollution did not reach the Park.
"We expect all our licensees to maintain equipment and infrastructure properly to avoid incidents like this, and allowing a pump to leak into a waterway is not acceptable."
Leachate is wastewater generated by landfills and when it enters a waterway, it carries pollutants like ammonia that reduce oxygen levels and can harm aquatic life.
When council reported the leak, EPA officers attended the site and issued clean up directions requiring council to stop the leak and clean up the creek. Council installed a replacement pump to stop the discharge.
Following the clean up, the EPA issued a Prevention Notice requiring Council to investigate and strengthen leachate management at the site. The EPA has received a report from Council with recommendations for the site and is considering the report.
