Peter and Jane Harris fined $60,000 plus costs for water take

Prominent cotton farming couple Peter and Jane Harris have been fined $60,000 for illegally pumping 1896ML of water and ordered to pay WaterNSW’s court costs totalling $450,000.

Cotton farmers Peter and Jane Harris have been ordered to pay more than $500,000 in fines and legal costs for water offences that occurred in 2016.

A cotton farming couple has been ordered to pay a fine of $60,000 for illegally pumping 758 Olympic swimming pools of water.

Irrigators Peter Harris and Jane Harris were found to have taken 1896ML of water from the Barwon river for their crops over six days in 2016 when pumping was forbidden.

In a judgment handed down by the Land and Environment Court on Tuesday, they were also ordered to pay WaterNSW’s legal costs for the case, which dragged on for five years. Those costs totalled $448,260, with additional costs from May 2022 onwards yet to be determined.

Sentencing in the case was delayed because the Harrises unsuccessfully appealed to the Court of Criminal Appeal and then sought leave to appeal that decision to the High Court, which was denied.

The maximum penalty for the pumping offence at the time was $247,500. The couple was charged separately, with Peter Harris fined $40,000 and Jane Harris $20,000.

Environmental Defenders Office special council Emily Long said the penalty wasn’t high enough.

“It is a disappointing outcome when the theft of water on such a large scale — almost 2 billion litres — results in $60,000 in fines,” she said.

“A penalty of this size is unlikely to deter large agribusinesses from breaking the law.

“Water is a scarce community resource that should be treasured and shared equitably. At the moment, that is not happening, and communities are suffering.”

In comparison, she referenced the case of cotton grower Henry Payson Pty Ltd, which was fined $350,000 in February for illegally taking 1948ML from the Gwydir River.

The Harris charges resulted from offending that occurred at cotton property Beemery Farm near Brewarrina, which the couple owns and runs. It is one of 11 farming properties Mr Harris either owns or co-owns.

Mr and Mrs Harris pleaded not guilty to the charges, arguing they were not aware of a rule that prohibited pumping when water levels at the Bourke gauge on the Darling River were below 4894ML per day.

They also provided evidence to the court they were overseas at the time of the offence and had left decisions over pumping to Beemery Farm’s managers.

The prosecutor argued it was “highly improbable” that a person of Peter Harris’ experience and agricultural business acumen would not have been aware of the 4894ML rule, but if it was true it amounted to “recklessness”, or even “criminal negligence”.

Mr Harris‘ businesses hold a combined 40 water access licences and 54 water supply works and water use approvals, with approvals covering 112 extraction sites, the prosecutor told the court.

The weir on the Darling river at Bourke, photographed in 2019. Pumping from the Barwon River is prohibited when daily flows through the Bourke weir are below 4894ML/day. Picture: Dylan Robinson

In his judgment, Justice John Robson wrote he was “uncomfortable with Peter Harris’ evidence (and in this sense, Jane Harris’ evidence) that, despite being an experienced farmer and cotton grower with decades of experience, he claims not to have known the specific conditions of the Approval and in a general sense, seeks to place responsibility both upon his subordinates, and/or abandon responsibility having been overseas at the time of the offending”.

But he was not convinced the Harris’ acted recklessly or negligently.

“I am not satisfied that on assessment of all the facts, I can conclude that the failure to take relevant precaution warrants criminal punishment,” Justice Robson said.

The judge found the Harris’ did not show remorse for their offending

“They have not demonstrated any insight into the nature of their offending nor shown genuine contrition,” he said.

The case is not the first time the Harris’ have faced court for water offences.

In 2020, Budvalt Pty Ltd, which was owned by Peter and Jane Harris, was fined $252,000 for illegally building a two-kilometre channel to take water from the Macquarie River to their Miralwyn Cotton property.

In 2019, Peter Harris was charged with two counts of extracting water on his Mercadool cotton property while metering equipment wasn’t working. He was acquitted of those charges in 2020 after prosecutors failed to establish all elements of the offence.

The Weekly Times contacted legal representatives of the Harris family for comment but did not receive a response.

WaterNSW said in a statement it “acknowledges the court’s decision without further comment”.