Woongarrah: Telford Civil charged with pollution, illegal works at Hiawatha Rd subdivision
A Sydney-based civil works company has been charged with breaching development consents and polluting local waterways when sediment allegedly escaped a major subdivision project.
Central Coast
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A Sydney earthmoving company will face a three-day hearing next year after being charged with 21 counts of polluting local waterways and carrying out illegal works.
Telford Civil Pty Ltd faced Wyong Local Court on Friday where a solicitor for the company pleaded guilty to one count each of polluting waters and carrying out development not in accordance with consent.
However the company’s solicitor also pleaded not guilty to a further 19 charges including eight counts of polluting waters, one count of polluting the air, nine counts of carrying out works not in accordance to a development consent and two counts of failing to comply with a clean up notice.
Following the not guilty pleas Magistrate Robyn Richardson listed the matter for a “special fixture” hearing over three days at Newcastle Local Court on March 11-13 next year.
Charge sheets tendered to court allege the earthmoving company first came under notice on September 30, 2022, when it failed to install adequate stormwater run-off controls at its works on 40-78 Hiawatha Rd, Woongarrah.
According to Telford Civil’s website the company was engaged to complete the groundworks for a major 93-lot subdivision at the site with an estimated capital investment value of $5.5m.
The charge sheets allege Telford Civil carried out works not in accordance with the site’s development consent in early and late April 2023, which allegedly resulted in sediment leaching into local stormwater drains on nearby Hakone Rd.
Central Coast Council, which is prosecuting the alleged breaches of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, issued Telford Civil with a clean up notice, which it allegedly failed to comply with when investigators returned to the site on April 27.
Telford Civil was issued another breach notice on May 5 last year after council officers “observed and reasonably suspected that incidents had occurred or were occurring and as a consequence there was an escape of sediment-laden water from the premises”, the charge sheets allege.
The company was further charged with breaches of the act in May, October and November last year.
The company has, however, pleaded guilty to one count each of polluting waters and carrying out development not in accordance with consent following an inspection on March 29 last year. Despite the guilty pleas no facts have been tendered in relation to those two charges.
Telford Civil Pty Ltd was contacted for comment but is yet to respond.
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