Quarry company Pearljaney Pty Ltd pleads guilty to misleading Department of Environment and Science

A Millmerran company has copped a $60,000 fine for breaches of the Environment Protection Act.

A Millmerran quarry company was fined $60,000 in the Toowoomba Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to misleading the state’s environmental department.

A Department of Environment and Science statement said the company – Pearljaney Pty Ltd – had a current environmental authority that authorised extractive and screening activities, including on one particular area of the site on the condition they provide an environmental offset.

Between August 2016 and April 2019, Pearljaney conducted extractive activities in the area without providing an environmental offset.

In January 2018, the company provided the Department of Environment and Science with an annual return falsely stating that it had complied with the conditions of its EA while knowing it had not provided an offset.

The company pleaded guilty to one charge of wilfully contravening a condition of an EA, in contravention of section 430(2) of the EP Act.

It also pleaded guilty to one charge of giving DES a document containing information it knew or should have known was false or misleading, in contravention of section 480(1) of the EP Act.

The company was also ordered to pay legal costs of $2,500 and investigation costs of $1,952.75.

No conviction was recorded.

The DES in a statement said Queensland had strong environmental standards, and extractive companies have an obligation to comply with the law.

“As the environmental regulator, DES takes compliance issues seriously,” the statement said.

“Where compliance issues are identified, the department will take strong enforcement action.”