AN IPSWICH construction company has been fined after being caught on camera illegally accepting, stockpiling, and crushing concrete waste, despite orders to stop.
The New Chum company, Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment Pty, between July and December 2020, accepted, processed, and stockpiled large amounts of waste concrete on a site near Ipswich without an environmental authority (EA).
On September 20, 2020, Department of Environment and Science (DES) officials demanded Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment Pty contractors stop accepting and stockpiling waste concrete.
The Redbank Plains operator continued accepting waste concrete and, on November 18, 2020, was fined by DES.
On December 1, 2020, DES officers using body-worn cameras watched on as construction company employees accepted and processed still more waste concrete.
Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment Pty was fined yet again.
Both fines were contested in court and a summary trial was held this February.
The construction company was found guilty of one count each of carrying out an environmentally relevant activity without an environmental authority, and wilfully contravening a direction notice.
Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment Pty was fined $40,000, ordered to pay $5,900 in legal and investigation costs and ordered to pay $1,720 to account for the EA fees not paid.
“This level of brazen offending is not acceptable to us or to the community,” A DES spokesman said.
“The approvals required by operators to carry out such activities are in place for a good reason – to manage the potential risk of harm to both the environment and surrounding communities.
“This fine serves as a strong reminder to operators that we will not back down from taking action to combat illegal activities that pose a risk to our environment.”
Crushed waste concrete can pose environmental risks through dust, noise, stormwater contamination and waste disposal.
No conviction was recorded.
In 2020, DES issued compliance notices to Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment Pty, a company associated with Ipswich businessman Tony Halpin, for unlicensed waste processing and imposed a fine of $13,000.
The company was found to have been crushing concrete without environmental approvals.
Mr Halpin, who owned Ipswich Earthmoving Equipment until 2015, now describes himself as a consultant to the company.
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