Spencer: Hassan Imbrahim fined for clearing 6ha of saltmarsh and 35 mangroves

A Sydney man has been slugged $33,000 in fines and court costs after clearing 6ha of protected saltmarsh and 35 mangrove trees from his Hawkesbury River weekender.

Hassan Ibrahim, 33, of Condell Park, leaving Gosford Local Court where he has pleaded guilty to seven counts of harming marine vegetation at his Spencer property on the banks of the Hawkesbury River. Picture: NewsLocal

A man who cleared 6ha of saltmarsh and 35 mangrove trees from the banks of his Hawkesbury River property has been slugged $33,000 in fines and court costs.

Hassan Ibrahim, 33, of Condell Park, faced Gosford Local Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to five counts of illegally clearing protected saltmarsh, and one count each of clearing mangrove trees and using illegal fill to build an access road.

Magistrate Kirralee Perry said the object of the legislation was to protect sensitive fish habitat along the tidal banks of the Hawkesbury River.

“General deterrence looms large in this matter otherwise the environment is not protected by property owners like you,” she told him.

“If property owners could clear whatever they like … there would be nothing for future generations.”

Saltmarsh is an ecologically endangered community which is typically found in the intertidal areas of coastal lagoons and rivers. Picture: NSW DPI.

Ibrahim faced maximum fines of $110,000 for each offence in higher courts but the jurisdictional limit in the Local Court was $22,000 for each offence.

Mr Perry fined him a total of $21,000 as well as ordering him to pay NSW Fisheries’ court costs of $12,000.

Ibrahim, 33, of Condell Park, leaving Gosford Local Court after pleading guilty to seven counts of harming marine vegetation at his Spencer property on the banks of the Hawkesbury River. Picture: NewsLocal

The court heard Fisheries’ total legal costs were $31,000 but Ms Perry said that figure, in conjunction with the fines, would be a “crushing” amount given Ibrahim’s limited means to pay.

Ms Perry also ordered Ibrahim to remediate the 6ha of saltmarsh he cleared, plant mangrove trees and remove a wooden boardwalk that was erected over the cleared mangroves to the water’s edge.

He was also ordered to remove the 516sq m of sandstone fill he put in over a “muddy driveway” through his property.

An agreed set of facts states Ibrahim owned the 20ha property at 5315 Wisemans Ferry Rd, Spencer, when NSW Fisheries were tipped off about illegal land clearing in 2023.

Hassan Ibrahim's property ar 5315 Wisemans Ferry Rd, Spencer, on the banks of the Hawkesbury River. Picture: Google

On July 5, 2023, a NSW Fisheries officer conducted an inspection of the site by boat and later by drone where he noted large tracts of sensitive saltmarsh appeared to be cleared, numerous mangrove trees had been cut down and a wooden boardwalk had been built through the mangroves to the water’s edge.

A few weeks later more Fisheries officers attended the property to conduct a land-based inspection while Ibrahim was present.

They found a total of 59,731sq m of saltmarsh had been cleared using a large mower or tractor, 35 mangroves had been cut down and crushed sandstone base had been used to create a 104m-long, 4.5m wide access road through the intertidal zone of the property.

Ibrahim participated in a recorded interview at Sydney South Fisheries Office where he said his late father had initially mowed some of the site to help him “recover” from floods and he has simply “maintained” them every three to six months.

Ibrahim said he constructed the boardwalk through the mangroves because children fished from that bank and he didn’t want them “hurting themselves”.

Originally published as Spencer: Hassan Imbrahim fined for clearing 6ha of saltmarsh and 35 mangroves