EPA takes Coffs Harbour council to court over Englands Road tip
Damning claims about a well and pipes designed to divert the gas naturally produced in rotting garbage at Coffs Harbour tip have been outlined in court. Here’s what has been alleged.
Coffs Harbour
Don't miss out on the headlines from Coffs Harbour. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Coffs Harbour’s waste facility at Englands Road has been described as ‘degraded’, ‘damaged’ and ‘blocked’ as its managers face prosecution for contravening environmental protections.
The Environmental Protection Authority is pursuing Coffs Harbour City Council for contravening a condition of its licence to run the facility.
It is alleged a well and associated lines designed to collect and divert the gas naturally produced in rotting garbage were not maintained properly.
The EPA argues the alleged lack of maintenance constitutes a breach of the council’s licence.
It’s been the city’s primary landfill since the 1960s and is well past its use-by date.
As the council scrambles to find a new location for the tip, it has had to take a number of drastic measures including trucking waste out of the region, raising the tip walls, even including specific key performance indicators to inspire senior staff to come up with a solution.
For years, the odour emanating from the facility has caused alarm with passing motorists on the Pacific Highway forced to wind up their windows and nearby residents and business operators pushed to breaking point.
The matter now before the court relates to the maintenance of a well known as ‘A48’ and its associated flow lines.
The council’s licence states plant and equipment used in connection with the EPA licensed activity at Englands Road must be properly maintained.
Documents tendered to court say the well lines were ‘degraded, damaged, not functional, not performing satisfactorily and/or blocked because the defendant (council) failed to replace and/or remediate the well and the associated flowlines which connected it to the land fill gas collection system’.
Land fill gas is generated by the natural degradation of rubbish and once produced, can be collected by a system that typically consists of a series of wells drilled into the landfill and connected using plastic pipes.
No plea was entered by HWL Ebsworth Lawyers acting on behalf of the council.
The matter was adjourned to November 8.
Grief tears through Coffs after missing woman’s tragic death
“Rest easy in the Dreamtime”: Tributes are flowing from a heartbroken community after a woman reported missing was found dead on the Coffs Coast.
Meet the candidates: Who’s who in Coffs council election
The NSW Local Government elections are just around the corner. We’ve reached out to Coffs council candidates to find out what they’re all about.