A cotton farm has been fined greater than $350,000 for knowingly taking an excessive amount of water from a northern NSW river across the time the state confronted a record-breaking drought.
Irrigation firm Henry Payson Pty Ltd, based mostly on the Gwydir River and which runs the Biniguy station close to Moree, pleaded responsible to knowingly taking water when the meters weren’t working from 2016 to 2018.
The water theft take occurred over two cotton seasons and was investigated and prosecuted by the NSW authorities’s Natural Resources Access Regulator.
The cotton firm, whose sole director is George Barne, additionally constructed and used with out approval a 610-megalitre dam, the equal of 244 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
In a ruling within the NSW Land and Environment Court, the corporate was fined $175,000 for one offence which concerned 12 situations of knowingly taking water whereas metering gear was not working through the 2016/17 cotton season.
A second offence attracted a tremendous of $125,000 for 27 situations of knowingly taking water whereas metering gear was not working over a second cotton season.
The cotton rising firm was additionally fined $43,750 for developing a dam with out approval, and fined an additional $10,000 for utilizing the dam.
The firm runs the 1500ha Binneguy Station in northern NSW, which incorporates 152 hectares of crops irrigated from the Gwydir River.
In her judgment handed down this week, Justice Rachel Pepper stated she was “satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Payson knowingly took water while the meter was under-recording by a factor of 1.8”.
She additionally discovered Payson “deliberately deceived the regulator” about how a lot water was taken from the Gwydir River over the 2 cotton seasons.
Judge Pepper concluded that water customers should precisely meter their water to protect the integrity and sustainability of the water-sharing scheme.
The tremendous was the largest the NSW water regulator has been concerned in, its director of investigations and enforcement Lisa Stockley instructed AAP.
“I do think the sentencing comments reflect that the conduct of the defendant undermined and was intending to undermine the regulatory regime by not properly metering their water take,” she stated.
But the fines have been condemned as “insulting” by environmentalists, with the NSW Conservation Council’s Mel Gray suggesting it was too low.
“The amount of money that is made off this water is enormous compared to the size of this fine,” she instructed AAP.
“Constructing a dam without approval, and then only being fined $40,000 is insulting.”
The Environmental Defenders Office stated whereas the profitable prosecution was welcome, water theft penalties wanted immediate assessment.
“On its face, $353,000 sounds like a decent fine but it is just five per cent of the maximum penalty that was available,” stated managing lawyer Andrew Kwan.
“Penalties should be tied to factors like turnover and commercial value of the benefit obtained to ensure the fines are a real punishment and a deterrent,” he stated.
“Our water is too precious to allow unlawful take, which harms our environment and other water users.”
Cotton Australia boss Michael Murray described the tremendous as “significant” and stated compliance has improved amongst growers since a strict regime was launched in NSW.
“It’s always disappointing when people have done the wrong thing, but it’s a historical offence, and we really believe that both the irrigation industry as a whole and cotton growers have certainly lifted their performance.”
Lawyers for the irrigation firm stated it’s contemplating an attraction.
NSW Lands and Water Minister Kevin Anderson’s workplace referred AAP again to the regulator.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
