General News
11 October, 2024
Farm fined nearly $10k
The operator of a broiler farm in Carisbrook has been fined nearly $10,000 after thousands of litres of water used to wash out poultry sheds escaped the property.
EPA officers inspected the Baringhup Road site in August and found wastewater escaping from a breached evaporation dam and flowing across Hurses Lane and Black Lane in Carisbrook.
They traced the flow back to the dam on a property run by Pavilion Farms 3 Pty Ltd, a Richmond-based company. They took water samples to confirm the origin of the escaped wastewater, before EPA fined the company $9880 for unlawfully depositing waste of more than 1000 litres via an offsite water discharge.
EPA northwest regional manager Paul Ratajczyk said the investigation began when a passing member of the public encountered a lane covered in wastewater.
“The water had been used to wash down the inside of a poultry shed, which made it industrial waste from a legal point of view, and a source of biological contamination for nearby waterways,” he said.
“The presence of bacteria from poultry manure made the waste-water a potential hazard to the environment and neighbouring farms.
“Businesses must have appropriate controls in place to manage and dispose of all wastes generated by their operations, they are expected to be proactive about preventing pollution, and EPA won’t hesitate to take action when pollution occurs.”
Members of the public can report pollution by calling EPA’s 24-hour hotline on 1300 372 842 or providing details online at epa.vic.gov.au/report-pollution/reporting-pollution
The company in question, Pavilion Farms, currently also has two broiler farm planning permit applications lodged with the Central Goldfields Shire Council.
These proposed developments at 705 Baringhup Road and 3280 Pyrenees Highway are in close proximity to the company’s existing facilities, including the one investigated by EPA.
If approved, the two broiler farms would cost $13 million each to develop.
In May, soon after public notices regarding the matter were sent out, The Advertiser reported on the strong disapproval expressed by residents.
Concerns raised highlighted the developments’ possible impact on surrounding environment, adjacent properties, and quality of life.
“We’re against it because it’s turning the area into an industrial zone and that will in turn devalue our property. It’s about the loss of amenity — this is beautiful prime agricultural land,” one resident said.
Other locals raised issues around the odour that would emanate from the location: “If there’s a bad [stench] no one would want to live here.”
Apart from community members, the Castlemaine Maryborough Rail Trail (CMRT) committee also objected to the proposals.
The Advertiser reported that in the site plans for the proposed broiler farm in Moolort, the buffer zone around the sheds engulfs a stretch of the rail reserve — potentially cutting it off from public use.
Five months on, the applications still haven’t been considered at a council meeting, leaving the matter and the future of the area undecided.