NSW makes push to double fines for serious environmental crimes, asbestos dumping
From littering to illegally dumping asbestos, one state has moved to double a slew of fines for environmental crimes in the first increase since 2005.
NSW has made the push to double fines for significant breaches of environmental crimes, including the dumping of asbestos and chemical spills, with companies who are found to have committed the most serious crimes liable to penalties of up to $10m.
NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said the widespread discovery of asbestos-contaminated mulch at 75 sites across Greater Sydney revealed loopholes and gaps in powers given to the NSW Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which the government was now racing to close.
“Under 12 years of conservative government, penalties and regulation haven’t kept pace. We need a tough environmental cop on the beat. Our changes will give the EPA more power to better protect our precious places and to deter environmental crime,” she said.
“The events of the past two months have shown the urgent need to reform environment protection laws and increase penalties.”
As a result, the state government introduced legislation on Thursday to significantly uplift a raft of penalties and on-the-spot fines, most of which have remained stagnant since 2005.
Maximum penalties for the most serious ‘Tier 1’ crimes which cause the wilful or negligent harm to the environment through the disposal of waste, or cause any substance to leak, or spill, will be doubled to $10m for companies and $2m for individuals.
Tier 2 offences, which include matters involving asbestos waste, or the failure to comply with a clean-up notice will carry maximum penalties of $4m for companies and $1m for individuals.
On-the-spot fines for littering of small items like lolly wrappers, cans, and cigarettes butts will also get a significant uplift from $80 to $160. If the items are thrown from a vehicle, the penalty will increase from the current rate of $250, to $500 for individuals and $1000 for corporations.
Small-scale illegal dumping will also be doubled to $50,000 for companies and $25,000 for individuals.
The policy changes would also give the EPA product recall powers, which would alert the public and allow materials potentially contaminated with harmful substances to be collected across the supply chain.
Additional abilities which could be implemented also include a public ’name and shame’ process, and powers to the Land and Environment Court to ban serial and serious offenders from applying for an environment protection licence.
Ms Sharpe said she was “very hopeful” the proposed amendments would be supported across all parties, and were slated to be voted on in the next fortnight.
The minister said the EPA’s criminal investigation into the mulch suppliers Greenlife Resource Recovery remained ongoing, with the watchdog also working with industry on strengthening compliance measures.
“There should be no asbestos in this product, and we’re determined to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” she said.
While Greenlife has been ordered by the EPA to cease production and exportation of its mulch as it suspected the production was “carried out in an environmentally unsatisfactory matter”, Greenlife’s parent company VE Resource Recovery has attempted to appeal the order in the NSW Land and Environment Court.
Lawyers acting for the company said it “cannot be discounted” that the contamination had come from other sources, after the mulch left its premises.
It also claimed seven EPA officers tested multiple samples of the recycled mulch and soil at their Bringelly facility on January 15, however no traces of asbestos were found. It had also sent off two rounds of its own samples of the recycled mulch which returned the same negative result.
The matter has been adjourned until March 28.
Originally published as NSW makes push to double fines for serious environmental crimes, asbestos dumping
