EPA Victoria welcomes the Supreme Court’s decision to order Renex Op Co Pty Ltd to pay $340,000 into a restorative justice fund dedicated to local environmental projects.
This civil penalty decision is a win for the community and reflects the gravity of Renex’s conduct.
The court found Renex twice failed to take all reasonable steps to ensure waste soil contaminated with asbestos was being transported to and received at a place authorised by EPA to receive it before allowing the soil to leave its control.
The court found that “the public has the right to expect that those authorised to manage material containing asbestos will deal with it appropriately and take the appropriate steps to protect human health and the environment”.
It also found that “Whilst there had been no direct harm to human health or the environment … this occurred in part because of EPA’s vigilance and not through the pre-emptive actions of Renex.”
The court described the penalty as an important signal that environmental laws were being enforced.
“It must be that a pecuniary penalty which is not in the range of the cost of doing business is imposed,” the Court found.
EPA Executive Director of Operations, Rachel Gualano, said EPA agreed with the Court’s observation that “the range of penalty proffered by Renex of $50,000-$75,000 is not reflective of the gravity of the contraventions” and was “an amount which represents more of a floating butterfly than the sting of a bee”.
“EPA is pleased that the Court imposed a financial cost to Renex that was significantly higher than their preferred range,” said Ms Gualano.
While Renex is licensed to receive N120 soils, including soils containing asbestos, the Court also ordered Renex to take additional steps to minimise the risk of any further non-compliance, including to:
- Update its asbestos management procedures and have them verified by an independent professional;
- Have relevant staff undertake further training to be provided by a suitably qualified professional; and
- Publish two separate adverse publicity notices on waste industry websites and publications.
The decision to award costs related to the conclusion of EPA’s earlier interim order application in these proceedings. This led to EPA narrowing our focus on key offending after the proceedings had commenced. The decision to narrow our focus prioritised the best outcome for community.
While EPA did not proceed with the remaining allegations in the proceeding against Renex and its CEO, such matters remain subject to EPA’s ongoing regulatory oversight of Renex’s environmental obligations and compliance requirements.
The money to be paid into EPA’s restorative justice fund will be used to fund a project, or series of projects benefiting the community in the impacted suburbs.
