Water pollution costs Seven Hills drum reconditioning company $15,000.
The NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has fined Seven Hills company VIP Drum Reconditioners $15,000 after an on-site spill caused caustic soda to spill into Toongabbie Creek.
VIP Drum Reconditioners holds an environment protection licence to clean and recondition steel and plastic drums at their Power Road site.
EPA officers attended the facility on 19 January after the company rang to notify the EPA of a spill incident.
After investigating the incident, the licensee and the EPA determined that the spill had occurred because a faulty valve had caused a wastewater containment tank to overflow.
Staff were also debriefed about the incident and were put through a refresher training course to ensure best practice was followed in case of any future spills.
EPA Director Waste Compliance Greg Sheehy said the $15,000 fine should act as a reminder to companies to ensure any chances of water pollution at their facilities were identified and rectified.
“While the company took a raft of steps to clean-up after the spill and minimise any harm, the fact remains that the spill occurred and put the environment at risk,” Mr Sheehy said.
“Like any incident, proper prevention is the best way to protect the environment, and the EPA will be monitoring VIP to ensure best practice is followed from now on.” Penalty notices are one of a number of tools the EPA can use to achieve environmental compliance including formal warnings, official cautions, licence conditions, notices and directions and prosecutions.
For more information about the EPA’s regulatory tools, see the EPA Compliance Policy at http://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/legislation/prosguid.htm