Baju developer Antunes at Henley Beach receives formal notice over alleged illegal water use
A Henley Beach apartment developer – accused of illegally flushing millions of litres of groundwater out to sea – has been hit with legal action by the State Government.
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The State Government has taken legal action against the developer a controversial Henley Beach apartment complex over a long-running groundwater dispute.
A formal notice was issued on Tuesday requiring Baju Apartments developer Antunes Group – owned by Richard Antunes – to rectify alleged illegal take of underground water at the Seaview Road site.
Issues surrounding water use have plagued the Baju development, which opened in 2011, for years.
It has been the subject of ongoing discussions between the State Government, the developer and Charles Sturt Council after the government became aware that underground water was struck during construction of the complex.
There has since been a breakdown in the negotiation process between the three parties.
It was hoped these discussions were progressing towards a voluntarily resolution.
The State Government, through the Department for Environment and Water (DEW), alleges the illegal take of water is the result of the building’s basement intruding the underground aquifer.
DEW general manager of water licencing Mike Fuller said the ongoing take of underground water at the site posed potential long-term risks of increased salinity, through sea water intrusion, and soil subsidence in the immediate area around the development.
“Given the benefit that voluntary compliance by the developer would have for the apartment holders and that the risks are manageable in the short term, the state government was willing to allow time for a resolution to be implemented by the developer,” Mr Fuller said.
“The intercepted groundwater is currently being directed to holding tanks in the basement car park of the complex and subsequently disposed of at the nearby beach.
“While the risks posed by the illegal take of underground water are manageable in the short term, they do require addressing to prevent risks to the underground water resource as well as the complex and other nearby properties in the long term.”
Mr Fuller said while discussions between parties to date about the resolution of this matter had progressed, negotiations have broken down.
“Therefore, the state government has no choice but to act and compel action. After a consultation process, the department formally issued a notice, pursuant to section 107 of the Landscape South Australia Act 2019,” Mr Fuller said.
“Despite our best efforts to work collaboratively, we’ve had to take this step to formally require the developer to undertake works to rectify the alleged illegal activity and to avoid the long-term risks.”
The Antunes Group was contacted for comment.